DAP Penang

Relocating Penang Port an act of betrayal

By admin on May 7th, 2010

GEORGE TOWN (May 7, 2010): The Penang government has described any suggestion or move for the 224-year-old Penang Port, now under the total jurisdiction of the federal government, to be relocated out of the state as an “act of betrayal to the people of Penang”.

Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said the state is willing to take over the port’s management to address problems and issues being raised to justify claims that the port should be relocated.

“Any party that tries to replace the port is adopting an anti-Penang stance,” he said. “It is an act of betrayal to the people of Penang.”

He stressed that the port, built soon after the British first settled in Penang in 1786, has profound historical links to the state.

“We consider any suggestion to move the port as anti-Penang…We want the person who suggested this to explain,” he said at a press conference at the Penang Development Corporation (PDC) today.

“Penang Port is making money, not losing money. So why is this an issue now?”

He also warned that moving the port out would have significant impact on industries, including the high-tech ones, that are heavily concentrated in the state.

Transport Minister Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat had said yesterday that the ministry has received feedback for the port to be moved from its current location at the North Butterworth Container Terminal.

Speaking during a dialogue with Penang Port customers and operators, Ong said the idea was among several that would be considered in drafting the
port’s masterplan for 2011 to 2030.

Krishnan Chelliah, president of Penang Freight Forwarders Association (PFFA), had raised the issue of large vessels not being able to enter the port, in reportedly stressing that the port could therefore be relocated to a more suitable site anywhere else in northern Malaysia.

Krishnan noted that the current depth of the Penang Channel at 11.5m was insufficient for large vessels which require a draft of about 15m.

He also noted that there was not enough space left for the port’s expansion, and dredging projects to increase the channel’s depth were expensive.

When contacted today, Krishnan maintained his stand and said the view he had expressed was that of PFFA. “If the dredging cost balloons to billions
of dollar, then experts need to look at the situation from a different dimension,” he said.

“We should look into going to a different place…There is so much public money being spent (on dredging),” he added.

“You ask the chief minister does he want Penang to remain a feeder port?”

He declined to say more as he did not want to be drawn into a media exchange with the chief minister, but will elaborate if he gets a letter from Lim’s office.

The Sun – Himanshu Bhatt – 07 May 2010
http://www.sun2surf.com/article.cfm?id=46496