Bus operators seek govt help over fund payments
KOTA KINABALU: The bus operators in Sabah are now facing financial dilemma as they have not been receiving their Interim Stage Bus Support Fund (ISBSF) payments for 13 months.
In light of this, the Pan Malaysian Bus Operators Association is now seeking help from the state government to intervene and bring the matter up to the federal government - to help revive the bus operating business in Sabah before it is too late.
During a press conference on Thursday, Pan Malaysian Bus Operators Association president Datuk Mohamad Ashfar Ali revealed that the last time the bus operators in Sabah and Sarawak had received the said funds was in September 2017.
“They have been carrying the burden for 13 months … subsidising. I was talking to some of them (directors) just now and they told me that they have begun selling their assets.
“One director even told me that he had pawned his wife’s jewellery to pay for the salary of his workers. It has come to this point.
“It is about time for the (federal) government to deliver or rather ‘walk the talk’ by paying our members in Sabah and Sarawak as soon as possible,” Ashfar told reporters.
Meanwhile, in Peninsular Malaysia, the last payment was made in February 2018.
Back in 2008, the association had requested the government to increase the fares for stage buses to cover the increasing operation costs, Ashfar said.
To address the issue, the government had set up the ISBSF in 2011. The first disbursement that was made to the stage bus operators was on January 3, 2012.
It is understood that the fund serves as an interim measure to cover the shortfalls in daily operations of affected stage bus operators, especially on social routes (neighbourhood routes that are less profitable to operators).
“The idea was for the government to give us the funds every month. That means, once we submit our claim – the government will pay us back the following month.
“These funds are needed to pay for the suppliers, insurance, fuel, road tax and most importantly, we have to pay for wages,” Ashfar explained.
To make matters worse, over the years, the government had been increasing the minimum wages and the cost of spare parts, insurance and oil had gone up to the average of 40 per cent, he said.
When asked whether the association had approached the Sabah state government on the issue, Ashfar disclosed that it had sent letters to various departments.
“This fund comes from the (Federal) Ministry of Finance in Putrajaya. It is from the consolidated funds that government pays out this money. It was channelled from the Ministry of Finance to the Commercial Vehicle Licensing Board (LPKP). Since the ministry is not giving out the money, the money could not be channelled to LPKP,” he said.
In view of this, Ashfar stressed that the problem lies with the Ministry of Finance.
It is his hope that the relevant state ministers will come to know of this issue through the said press conference.
“My members will be following up from Sabah. They will refer to relevant ministers – to push their cases forward,” he said.
He added the association had actually referred to the several members of parliament (MPs) in the past but due to the recent change of government, the matter had now been put aside.
If the issue remains unsolved, Ashfar predicted that the bus operators in the country would undergo a ‘slow bleeding process’, whereby the number of operating buses and routes would slowly decrease and this in turn would disrupt the livelihood of the people.
He pointed out that a bus company in Sandakan, which used to have over 100 buses were now left running with only eight buses – all due to the delay in the disbursement of funds.
In Peninsular Malaysia, many of the bus operators had even decided to shut down.
The association was established in 1951 and it consists of member associations from various states across the country. There are currently 110 bus companies under the association.
Separately, Ashfar has also called on the Federal Government to put a stop to the operation of illegal buses and vans in East Malasyia – a practice that is commonly referred to as ‘kereta sapu’ in Sabah.
Ashfar attributed the problem with the ‘lack of enforcement and political will’ on the Federal Government’s behalf and these illegal operations would also inadvertently affect the businesses of legitimate stage buses operators.
He also called on for the Federal Government to deregulate bus fares for express buses as there was a need for the bus operators to increase their prices so that they can provide value-added services to the public.
The last time the express buses fares were increased was back in July 2009.
Also present at the press conference were Sabah Omnibus Operators’ Association chairman cum Pan Malaysian Bus Operators Association vice president David M Chu and Sarawak Bus Transport Co Association honorary secretary William Chan.