GEORGE TOWN: The Penang Pakatan Harapan government has been reminded that they were the ones who wanted ferries to be replaced with catamarans as stated in its Penang Transport Master Plan (PTMP).
Penang historian Khoo Salma Nasution said the state leadership had apparently forgotten that they proposed to replace the ferries with catamarans.
“It says so in the PTMP or perhaps they haven’t read the document themselves, ” she said in a Facebook post on Wednesday.
Khoo Salma said most of the post-2015 version of the PTMP was objectionable as it consisted mainly of environmentally-destructive highways and reclamation and the state government wanted to bulldoze it through despite objections from the rakyat.
Thursday, 24 Dec 2020 04:23 PM MYT
Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow speaks during a press conference at Komtar in George Town December 10, 2020. Picture by Sayuti Zainudin
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GEORGE TOWN, Dec 24 While the country is still in the grip of the Covid-19 pandemic moving into 2021, Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow hopes that stronger political stability and investment will continue to be generated while the nation gets a cure for the epidemic.
He said the state government hoped that the federal government’s effort could ensure Malaysia had prompt and adequate supply of vaccine for the well-being of the people to further help to boost the economy.
Coming into the picture: Sasedharan showing the type of waterbus which will be plying Penang’s waterways. KT GOH/The Star.
GEORGE TOWN: They are prone to breakdowns. Maintenance costs a bomb. The iconic Penang ferry will not be seaworthy soon.
These are some of the main reasons for waterbus coming into the picture in the near future.
Penang Port Sdn Bhd (PPSB) will take over the ferry services from Prasarana Malaysia Bhd from Jan 1,2021.
Work is already underway to refurbish the current terminal and bring in the waterbus to replace the present Rapid Ferry service within 10 to 12 months.
PPSB chief executive officer Sasedharan Vasudevan said all systems were in place for the takeover and three passenger-only waterbus would ply the waters.
In Malaysia, the Covid-19 outbreak and subsequent Movement Control Order (MCO) badly affected many sectors, especially in the first half of the year. The current third wave of infections and further political turmoil have added to the uncertainties that the country is already facing.
For the property sector, with business being disrupted due to the closure of sales galleries, developers and agents have turned to online platforms to sell their properties and close sales. While developers have offered many packages and incentives, the performance of the property market continues to be impacted by Covid-19.
In presenting the 3Q2020 Penang Housing Property Monitor, Raine & Horne International Zaki + Partners Sdn Bhd senior partner Michael Geh notes that Penang’s property market performed poorly in the first half of the year. The Ministry of Finance’s Valuation and Property Services Department data shows that real estate transactions in the state experienced a sharp decline in the s