Warisan rep says Sabah govt should provide airfare subsidies for students

KOTA KINABALU: The Sabah government should provide subsidies for students travelling back home for the festivities amid the rising cost of airfares, says Sri Tanjung assemblyman Justin Wong.

He said its neighbouring state Sarawak, led by Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS), had initiated the i-GPS airfare subsidy which provides a RM300 subsidy for students at higher learning institutions in Peninsular Malaysia.

He said the Sabah government, led by Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS), should also consider implementing a similar scheme to ease the burden of the people.

Wong questioned the state government for its silence over expensive flight tickets from Kuala Lumpur to Sabah during the Hari Raya Aidilfitri and school holiday period, while the Sarawak government had acted.

“The GRS government cannot just sit and watch while Sabahans suffer like this every year. The Sabah government has not been taking any action nor expressed its stance on this issue,” said the Parti Warisan assemblyman.

Wong said the Sabah GRS government should emulate Sarawak and provide airfare subsidies, especially for those flying from Peninsular Malaysia to Tawau.

He also noted that although the Transport Ministry had approved six domestic airlines to operate 527 additional flights during the Hari Raya period, the airfares had gone up instead of down.

“Just look at the air ticket from Kota Kinabalu to Tawau, it is costly for less than an hour's flight. This is because some had no alternative to fly from KK to KL and then to Tawau.

"In contrast, flight tickets within the peninsula, from Kuala Lumpur to Kelantan, Terengganu, Penang or Johor, even if purchased at the last minute, are much cheaper than those in Sabah,” he said.

Wong said during this festive season, people from Tawau, who work in Peninsular Malaysia not only have to pay expensive airfares, but also have to waste a lot of time transiting between cities.

For example, he said, one of his constituents working in Johor had to fly to Kuala Lumpur, and then to Kota Kinabalu, where the traveler will stay a night before flying to Sandakan, then to Tawau due to insufficient flights available.

“Festive seasons like Hari Raya Aidilfitri and Chinese New Year are important for family reunions, I hope the government can negotiate airfares with airline companies.

“I also hope that airline companies can take the public into consideration while making a profit,” he added.