AirBorneo, Bintulu Port handover among key gains from Federal-Sarawak cooperation, says Loke

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 3 — Strong cooperation and a close working relationship between the Federal Government and the Sarawak government have delivered high-impact transport development projects in the state within a short period, says Transport Minister Anthony Loke Siew Fook.

He said close cross-party cooperation with his deputy, Datuk Hasbi Habibollah, has allowed several major commitments to be fulfilled for the people of Sarawak.

Key achievements include solid support in realising Sarawak’s own boutique airline, the handover of Bintulu Port Authority to the state government, the introduction of the BAS.MY public transport system in Kuching, the Miri Airport upgrading project, and the construction of a new Road Transport Department (JPJ) complex in Limbang.

“Over the past few years, since we teamed up at the Transport Ministry, Datuk Hasbi and I have worked together closely without any issues, despite coming from different political backgrounds.

“We have always maintained a very good working relationship, and as a result, we have been able to implement and resolve many matters,” he said in a video recording of his speech at the groundbreaking ceremony for the Limbang JPJ branch office on Oct 28, uploaded to his Facebook page yesterday.

Touching on the establishment of Sarawak’s airline, Loke said the goal was achieved in less than three years through strategic cooperation between both sides.

“For Sarawak, we have jointly delivered on several major matters at the Transport Ministry. First, during this term alone, we helped realise the Sarawak government’s aspiration to have its own airline,” he said.

He explained that AirBorneo has commenced operations and taken over MASwings services, with all ATR aircraft now under AirBorneo, alongside plans to operate jet aircraft connecting Sarawak to various regional destinations.

Beyond aviation, Loke said the Federal Government also fulfilled demands under the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) by returning port authority powers to the state.

On land transport, Loke said the ministry expanded the public transport network by providing direct funding to Sarawak, which the state had never received previously.

“At the departmental level, we started the BAS.MY service in Kuching, a key initiative by the Transport Ministry given that Sarawak never had a federally funded stage bus system before.

“Starting in Kuching, we hope to expand this service to other areas in the future. As for the JPJ, this is the only new building construction approved for this term, and we will assess needs in other locations after this,” he said.

Meanwhile, addressing connectivity in northern Sarawak, Loke said the expansion and upgrading of Miri Airport has been approved by the Ministry of Finance to cope with passenger overflow and spur economic growth in surrounding areas, including the Limbang Division.

“This project serves as an important gateway to Limbang, and I am confident its capacity can be increased. This will allow for more flights, bringing more visitors here, which is vital to stimulate development across Limbang,” he said. — Bernama

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吉隆坡，11月3日讯——交通部长陆兆福表示，联邦政府与砂拉越州政府之间强有力的合作和紧密的工作关系，使得该州在短时间内取得了具有重大影响的交通发展项目。

他表示，与副手拿督哈斯比·哈比布拉密切的跨党派合作，使得为砂拉越人民履行的几项重大承诺得以实现。

主要成就包括：大力支持砂拉越成立自己的精品航空公司、将民都鲁港务局移交给州政府、在古晋引入 BAS.MY 公共交通系统、美里机场升级项目以及在林梦建造新的陆路交通局 (JPJ) 大楼。

“过去几年，自从我们在交通部共事以来，尽管我和拿督哈斯比的政治背景不同，但我们一直密切合作，没有任何问题。”

“我们一直保持着非常好的工作关系，因此，我们能够实施和解决许多问题，”他在10月28日林邦陆路交通局分局奠基仪式上的讲话视频中说道，该视频昨天上传到了他的Facebook页面。

谈及砂拉越航空公司的成立，陆兆福表示，通过双方的战略合作，在不到三年的时间内就实现了这一目标。

“就砂拉越而言，我们在交通部共同完成了几项重大工作。首先，仅在本届任期内，我们就帮助砂拉越政府实现了拥有自己航空公司的愿望，”他说。

他解释说，婆罗洲航空已开始运营并接管了MASwings的服务，所有ATR飞机现在都归婆罗洲航空所有，同时还计划运营喷气式飞机，连接砂拉越和各个区域目的地。

除了航空领域，陆兆福表示，联邦政府还履行了1963年马来西亚协议（MA63）的要求，将港口管理权归还给了州政府。

陆路交通方面，陆兆福表示，交通部通过向砂拉越提供直接资金来扩大公共交通网络，这是该州以前从未获得过的资金。

“在部门层面，我们在古晋启动了 BAS.MY 服务，这是交通部的一项重要举措，因为砂拉越以前从未有过联邦政府资助的公共汽车系统。

“我们希望先在古晋开展这项服务，未来再扩展到其他地区。至于陆路交通局（JPJ），这是本任期内唯一获批的新建筑，之后我们会评估其他地区的需求，”他说道。

与此同时，在谈到砂拉越北部地区的交通连接问题时，陆兆福表示，财政部已批准扩建和升级美里机场，以应对客流高峰并刺激周边地区（包括林梦省）的经济增长。

“这个项目是通往林梦的重要门户，我相信它的运力可以进一步提升。这将增加航班数量，吸引更多游客前来，这对促进林梦地区的发展至关重要。”他说道。——马新社

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