‘Shorten dredging distance to save cost’
KUCHING: The state Democratic Action Party ( DAP) has proposed that the state government shorten the distance of dredging Sarawak River to save at least 65 per cent or RM230 million of the cost of the project.
Its chairman Chong Chieng Jen also urged the government to review the initial plan to dredge 23.4km of Sarawak River from Muara Tebas (river mouth) to Pending Port at a total cost of RM360 million.
“There is no need to dredge the channel from Muara Tebas all the way up to Pending Port,” he told a press conference at his party’s headquarters here yesterday.
Instead, he said it would make more economic sense to merely dredge the channel from Muara Tebas up to Senari Port, a distance of only 7km.
Illustrating his point on a printout of a Google satellite map, Chong said the distance from Muara Tebas (river mouth) to Senari Port is approximately 7km whereas the distance from Muara Tebas to Pending Port is 19km.
“Taking Muara Tebas as the reference point, the distance to Senari Port is only 35 per cent the distance to Pending Port,”
Chong said that for years Pending Port had handled less than 25 per cent of import and export cargo while the bulk of the cargo (75 per cent) was handled by Senari Port.
“Pending Port is mainly used for the shipment of vehicles and dry bulk cargo.
“All containers are handled at Senari Port and container cargo
There is no need to dredge the channel from Muara Tebas all the way up to Pending Port. Chong Chieng Jen, Democratic Action Party chairman
constitutes more than 70 per cent of the total cargo volume of Kuching Port Authority ( KPA).
“In the international shipping industry, the really large vessels are mostly carrying containers.
Given that Pending Port does not handle container cargo, it is most unlikely that there will be very large vessels calling at Pending Port,” he said for the reason not to deepen that part of the channel from Senari Port to Pending Port.
Chong added that the state government would save at least 65 per cent of the dredging costs if they were to adopt his proposal to dredge the channel from Muara Tebas up to Senari Port (which is only 7km).
“From the RM360 million allocation, which, according to Minister of Infrastructure Development and Transportation Tan Sri Datuk Amar Dr James Masing, is now with the state government, a saving of 65 per cent means a saving of RM230 million,” he said.
With this saving of RM230 million and a shorter channel to maintain, Chong said there was absolutely no need to collect the ‘Channel Maintenance Recovery Charges’ from shippers and shipping companies, which ultimately would be passed onto the consumers.
Chong is repeating calls for the postponement or cancellation of the implementation of the new charges by KPA.
The rates to be imposed are RM36.25 per Twenty- foot Equivalent Unit ( TEU), RM72.50 per 40 ft container and RM1 per tonne on loose cargo.
The implementation of the recovery charges will increase the port charges for containers and loose cargoes by approximately 20 per cent.
“Ultimately, the additional charges will be passed onto the consumers who are already suffering due to the depreciation of the ringgit, GST, inf lation and economic recession,” Chong said.
In principle, he said the maintenance of rivers was the responsibility of the government since shippers and shipping agents were paying port charges.
“There should not be additional charges in the name of channel maintenance recovery charges.”
Chong also questioned why the collection of the new charges when the RM360 million Sarawak River dredging project would only begin in August.
“By right, maintenance charges should only be collected after the completion of the project, similar to the maintenance charges for condominiums and/or apartment units which are only payable after the completion of the buildings.”
The dredging project, he added, was only scheduled to be completed in three years’ time and as such any maintenance charges should only be made after the completion of the project.