GEORGE TOWN – If the Penang Port Commission (PPC) and Transport Ministry are genuine about preserving the double-decker ferries in the state, then keep the ships in service due to their heritage value.
Former Penang Port Sdn Bhd (PPSB) chief executive officer Datuk Ahmad Ibnihajar said the federal government has a moral duty and responsibility to keep the ferries.
“The ferries are relevant to the history and heritage of Penang. PPC could have saved them from becoming irrelevant and not left them to rot in Sg Prai.
“The authorities could have followed Hong Kong, which still has similar ferries but kept them servicing shorter routes. If Hong Kong can do that, why can’t we?
“Here, we could have used the ferries to transport tourists from Penang to Pulau Aman, Pulau Kendi, Pulau Rimau and Pulau Jerejak, or Pantai Merdeka in Kedah, as they will prefer to take a scenic route.”
During his tenure as CEO, Ahmad said he reported RM6 million in losses due to the service, but when Prasarana Malaysia Bhd took over in 2017, it declared RM20 million in losses for the same reason.
“I do not understand how the losses could have tripled.”
He said the Penang government had wanted to take over the ferry services but washed its hands of the matter, so Prasarana took control of the services despite being uninterested in it.
Bagan Dalam assemblyman M. Satees said he supported the plan for the state government to preserve the ferries, and had high hopes that they will continue running.
“Last December, I accompanied Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow when he visited PPC, where its chairman assured that the ferries will be maintained even after the passenger-only catamarans are introduced from January 1.
“I proposed to the PPC chairman to place the ferries in Butterworth. I have also identified a location to dock them and a businessman who wanted to convert a ferry into a restaurant.
“Now, it is just sad to see the Pulau Pinang ferry taking in water in the (Prai) river.”
Satees said he hopes the rest of the ferries will not end up in scrapyards.
PPC chairman Datuk Tan Teik Cheng had on Sunday said the ferry named Pulau Pinang has been parked in the Sg Prai dockyard since November 27, 2019, for repairs.
“The repair process was disrupted because we failed to obtain spare parts, which need to be specially ordered from the Netherlands, but we will continue the repairs today.
“It is not certain how long that will take. The overhaul process is challenging because we have to wait until the water recedes to pump it out of the ferry.”
The ferry will be turned into a museum due to its name, he added.
“Once the repairs are completed, the ferry will be handed over to the appointed management company and moved to the Tg City marina on Penang island, where it will be displayed as a museum.”
Tan said there are three unused ferries at the Sultan Abdul Halim terminal in Butterworth, with two to serve as tourist ferries and one converted into a floating restaurant.
The public has criticised PPC and the Transport Ministry after photos of “Pulau Pinang” sinking went viral. It was also learnt that intruders had entered the ferry and looted its parts.
The iconic ferries commenced operations in Penang in 1894, and upgraded to double-decker transporters for vehicles, motorcycles and foot passengers in the 1970s.
Last year, PPSB and regulator PPC started to phase out the ships and replace them with modern transporters, which will go into service later this year.
Catamarans leased from ferry operators in Langkawi are now used to transport people between the Swettenham Pier cruise terminal and Sultan Abdul Halim terminal in Butterworth, pending the transporters’ arrival. – The Vibes, June 8, 2021
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