KLANG: The infrastructure and ecosystem at the port need to be continuously streamlined and improved to reduce the issue of congestion at the country’s ports, said Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
The Prime Minister said the role of the port is critical in driving the country’s economic growth, in line with the desire to make Malaysia a transport hub for various industries through increased investment and higher trade. He revealed that matters related to increasing port and transport capacity have been brought up several times in Cabinet meetings, including Westports in Port Klang.
“Ports play a critical role in supporting the government’s efforts to attract various investments to drive the country’s economic growth, so the existing ecosystem and infrastructure must be improved.
“On the part of the government, we have asked for every related matter to be simplified and expedited because we don’t want the country to fall behind due to administrative matters,“ he said at the groundbreaking ceremony for Westports 2 here today.
Also present were Selangor Chief Minister Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari, Transport Minister Anthony Loke Siew Fook, Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz and Westports Malaysia executive chairman Datuk Ruben Emir Ghanalingam Abdullah.
Anwar, who is also the Minister of Finance, said the opening of Westports 2 is a step in the right direction in reducing congestion in Port Klang, a problem that also plagues Penang Port and Port of Tanjung Pelepas in Johor. He said Westport’s capability as a global maritime and logistics hub, recognised by the world, will continue to increase through the opening of new container terminals at Westports 2 later.
“In 1994, as the finance minister at the time, I attended Westports to see the initial construction work of this port and I could see its ability and potential to emerge as an important port. So, I think the need to speed up the opening of this new infrastructure cannot be disputed and the government will give full support to make sure this port expansion project is successful,“ he said.
Regarding the frequent reports of accidents involving lorries on the Port Klang route, Anwar said the government has agreed to prioritise road widening on the route in development planning next year. He said the matter would be discussed further with Amirudin and Loke.
In the meantime, the Prime Minister also urged the port management to increase the wages of workers in line with the increase in productivity and company finances.
Anwar said he also wants matters related to the welfare of workers such as their children’s schooling and housing to be given the best attention because the success of the company is closely related to the productivity and hard work of the workers. “Relatively, workers are given good treatment but I would like to urge companies with high productivity to also increase workers’ wages as well as other welfare matters such as schooling and housing,“ he added.
