PETALING JAYA: Former finance minister Lim Guan Eng says his successor’s recent statement in Parliament proved he had imposed a condition on Penang Port Sdn Bhd (PPSB) to maintain the iconic Penang ferries in exchange for the RM30 million allocated by the Pakatan Harapan (PH) government.
On Thursday, Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Aziz told the Dewan Rakyat that the RM30 million allocated for PPSB to maintain the ferry services will be channelled in two instalments next year.
“The government will ensure that Penang Port will be required to continue Penang’s iconic ferry service,” he said.
In a statement, Lim said the 126-year-old ferry service was “saved” as Tengku Zafrul had upheld the condition made in writing during the PH administration.
He trained his guns on Transport Minister Wee Ka Siong for choosing to do the opposite.
Lim also accused Wee of lying by saying he (Lim) had decided to replace the ferries with catamarans, adding that former transport minister Loke Siew Fook also denied making such a decision when helming the post.
“Can Wee show proof when and where both of us had decided to terminate the Penang ferry service? This is patently false.
“Both Loke and I had repeatedly said we were not opposed to adding on catamarans, provided the existing ferry service was maintained.
“We acknowledge its cost and the difficulty in finding a suitable replacement. That is why we insisted that the few ferries remaining be allowed to continue operating. In other words, the catamarans will be operating in parallel with the existing ferry services,” he said.
He said Penangites were “betrayed by the dirty politics of MCA leaders” in the transport ministry and Penang Port Commission (PPC) in the decision to terminate the ferry services.
The Penang government had asked Tengku Zafrul to clarify what he meant when he told the Dewan Rakyat that Penang’s iconic ferry service would continue, with a RM30 million allocation from the ministry.
This was because the port operators were reported to be likely to go ahead with their plans to retire all but one of the old ferries at the end of the month. PPSB had said new water buses and transporters will be in service in 18 months.
Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said there was a stark difference between what was being presented by PPSB and Tengku Zafrul and this had to be clarified.
On Tuesday, PPC and PPSB had announced they will be spending RM64 million to buy five new vessels, two of which would transport motorcycles and bicycles.
According to the federal port regulators, PPC, the amount would cover the cost of upgrading the terminals on the island and mainland.
One of the last two remaining old ferries will be used to transport only motorcycles until the new vessels arrive in 2022. After that, both older vessels will be converted into floating museums or restaurants, PPC said.