THIS IS FOR YOU: Teo (third from left) presents a souvenir to Hernandez.
KOTA KINABALU: The Federal Government through the Home Ministry has allocated a sum of RM20 million to upgrade the facilities of the port in Kudat.
This includes improving the safety measures for usage by passengers as well as to build a ram for a roll-on roll-off service between Brooke’s Point in the province of Palawan, Philippines and Kudat.
Minister of Special Tasks Datuk Teo Chee Kang said the sea linkage between Palawan and Sabah would be good for the transportation of goods, products and trade items between the two places.
“As far as I’m concerned, I’d like to see the ram implemented as soon as possible.
“I’ll use all my means to expedite the implementation of the ram in Kudat so that in the near future we are going to have the sea linkage between Palawan and Sabah,” the Tanjung Kapor assemblyman said during a welcoming dinner hosted by Teo for 60 delegates from Palawan, Philippines here on Friday.
The delegates from Palawan were here from November 29 to December 1 on a business trade mission.
Teo also informed the Palawan delegation that the Custom, Immigration, Quarantine and Security (CIQS) centre in Kudat had been fully operational since early April this year.
In this globalized economy, Teo said it was a trend that countries in the same region were creating economic blocs in order to improve their competitiveness and bargaining power when conducting businesses with other parts of the world, for instance, the European Union, ASEAN and Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia and Philippines-East Asia Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA).
With a population of more than 70 million in BIMP-EAGA, it is a big market that had yet to be fully exploited, Teo said.
“There are lots of potential, especially for businessmen.” Teo said Sabah was very fortunate to be located strategically in the centre of the South East Asia (SEA) and the centre of BIMP-EAGA.
“Sabah is very near to the Philippines, Brunei, Indonesia, especially Kalimantan, Sulawesi and the neighbouring islands.
“With our strategic location, I believe there is lot to gain as far as Sabah and Palawan are concerned.”
In January this year, Teo led 50 delegates comprising senior government officers including immigration and police officers as well as local businessmen for a visit to Palawan.
At that time, Teo said the delegation had to take a flight from Kota Kinabalu to Clark, another flight to Puerto Princesa the next day, followed by a three-hour journey to Brooke’s Point.
“In fact, the distance between the province of Palawan and Sabah is so near.
“The Banggi Island at the northern part of Sabah is just half an hour boat ride from Pulau Mangsee, which is part of Palawan.” Teo said many of the commodities, daily items and trade items on Pulau Mangsee were actually from Kudat, including Digi telecommunications service used by the people on the island.
Today, Teo said the dream of having direct flights serving Kota Kinabalu and Puerto Princesa had been realized with MASwings’ inaugural flight from Kota Kinabalu to Puerto Princesa on November 22 this year.
During his speech, Teo commended the BIMP-EAGA Sabah and Palawan for making the visit a reality and to bring businessmen of both sides together.
He also hoped that businessmen from Sabah and Palawan would make full use of the business matching session held yesterday.
“This will prove that BIMP-EAGA is not eat and go away,” Teo said, citing a joke by the president and chairman of BIMP-EAGA Palawan Business Council Inc Commodore Nick M. Hernandez.
“If we can join resources and join forces, we can create a bigger economic bloc and exploit the big market of 70 million in this region.
“With that together we will move ahead, we will develop our economies for mutual benefit.”
With the development of economy, Teo said job and trade opportunities for the people would naturally come while at the same time, the issue of poverty in this region could be addressed.
Teo said the Sabah State Government and Palawan Provincial Government had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to promote cooperation in areas such as socioeconomic and cultural exchange.
“I believe with the direct flights (from Kota Kinabalu to Puerto Princesa provided by MASwings three times a week), we will be able to forge a closer relationship for mutual benefit.
“And with that I believe we can also promote even more vibrant bilateral trade between Palawan and Sabah.”
Present at the event were Mayor Datuk Abidin Madingkir, City Hall director-general Datuk Yeo Boon Hai, Brooke’s Point Municipal Mayor Mary Jean D. Feliciano and Vice Mayor Cesareo R. Benedito.