By : QUEVILLE TO
KOTA KINABALU: The nine-hour
shutdown of Kota Kinabalu International Airport (KKIA) stranding thousands of
out and in-bound passengers on Thursday has breathed new life into demands that
a bridge be built connecting Labuan island and its airport to the Sabah
mainland.
The Sabah Progressive Party
(SAPP) said a second international airport link within driving distance from
the state capital such as in the international tax haven would raise the
economic profile of both destinations.
Besides this, with the
construction of a bridge linking Labuan and the mainland, the journey to the
state capital would be shortened.
Party President Yong Teck
Lee made the proposal when commenting on the embarrassing closure of the KKIA
on Thursday due to malfunctioning runway lights.
Thousands of passengers were
stranded when the runway lights at the KKIA suddenly went out at 6.20pm causing
all incoming flights to be diverted to the Labuan airport.
Among those passengers
affected were Plantation Industries and Commodity Minister Bernard Dompok, who
was forced to make an unscheduled stop in Labuan, while Sabah Youth and Sports
Minister Peter Pang had to abandon his plan to fly to Sandakan.
Yong questioned how such a
serious malfunction could take place at such an important facility without any
back-up in place and who would compensate those affected by the foul-up.
He said the disruption
highlighted the absence of essential infrastructure in the state.
“If the two facilities were
in place, the massive damages and inconvenience of this nine-hour shutdown of
Kota Kinabalu International Airport could have been alleviated.
“Passengers (of flights)
that were diverted to Labuan could have driven back to KK and other mainland
destinations,” Yong said in a statement issued here today.
Report to be made to state
cabinet
Yong had been a proponent
for a Labuan Bridge which he said would have a huge economic and social impact
for Labuan and Sabah but this was rejected by Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin
Yassin in 2010.
Meanwhile, the state
government has ordered a full investigation and explanation for the cause of
the flight disruptions on the eve of Hari Raya Aidiladha holiday.
State Tourism, Culture and
Environment minister Masidi Manjun said he expected Malaysia Airports Berhad
and the Civil Aviation Department to explain the incident to the state cabinet
at its next meeting.
“There is still no certainty
if the runway lights problem will be solved and this is an issue of great
concern to Sabah. This should nudge those in authority like the Transport
Ministry and MAB to immediately take action and ensure it does not happen
again.
“KKIA is the busiest airport
after Kuala Lumpur International Airport and it is quite unthinkable that its
operations could be knocked out by runway light problem with no apparent back
up contingency plan,” he told the media.
About 40 flights were
disrupted on Thursday affecting about 5,000 passengers.
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