Lawas and Limbang folk want more flights for polls, Christmas
MIRI: Lawas and Limbang folk are calling on MASwings and the relevant authorities to increase the frequency of direct flights to the two sectors from Miri for the 12th Sarawak election and Christmas.
According to Lawas resident Sigang Bian, 58, the limited flights available to the town had already been sold out.
“There is only one way to get to Lawas now, which is by flight. Because of the unavailability of tickets, some were forced to take flights from Sibu to Kuching then to Kota Kinabalu.
“From KK, they will have to travel by land to Lawas (which takes about four to five hours). And this costs between RM500 and RM600 per person one way,” she told The Borneo Post.
Sigang said alternatively, some had to fly to Limbang from Miri and take the sole express boat to Lawas, which is a three-hour journey.
“However, they had to stay overnight in Limbang and this is an additional cost to them. Even if the express operates daily, the timetable is not fixed. So, by the time they arrive in Limbang the express had already departed,” she explained.
Fellow Lawas resident Mutang Padan, 59, said he could not get a direct flight from Miri to Lawas, but managed to secure a ticket to fly to Limbang.
He said he would fly to Limbang on Dec 14 and hopes to be able to get to his polling station in Lawas on time.
“There are many people who want to go back to vote, but there are no more flight tickets available. I was fortunate to be able to book a few tickets to Limbang.
“We would have to stay overnight in Limbang though as we cannot pre-book the express ticket,” he said, adding that many were actually gambling with their time and money as they could miss polling day.
He pointed out flights as being a basic need that the government of the day must provide to the people, especially when there are major events or festivals coming up.
With the announcement of the 12th state election, he said the government should have anticipated that more people would need to travel.
“With the number of people travelling for election and Christmas, it only makes sense that the number of flights to certain sectors, where the only means of transportation is by flying, be increased.
“You give us the right to vote but do not give the door for us to exercise it,” he said.
The Borneo Post tried to contact federal Deputy Transport Minister Datuk Henry Sum Agong, who is also Lawas MP, on the issue but was unable to reach him.