Transport Vehicles Permitted To Transfer Goods From March 27 To 29 Minister

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CORONAVIRUS | Transport Minister Wee Ka Siong has announced a three-day clearance to be implemented for logistic services to transport goods and ensure supplies during the movement control order (MCO)
According to Wee, the special arrangement involves ports as well as logistics services on the road from tomorrow, March 27
“To allow for the transit and delivery of all goods, including essential and non-essential goods during the MCO, police will allow transport vehicles carrying such goods to move on the roads between Friday, March 27, to Sunday, March 29,” Wee said in a statement
He said he also ordered all relevant ports to be accorded special exemption to transfer non-essential goods to temporary warehouses outside of the ports to clear space for the transfer of essential goods during the three-day period
“At this time, the space capacity at Klang Port, Penang Port and Johor Port in Pasir Gudang has neared 100 percent following the cessation in transferring goods to storage warehouses prior to being sent to their final destinations
“If not addressed soon, the warehouses will be full and will reach maximum capacity within the week
“This must be addressed fast so there is no congestion during the MCO period when imported essential goods begin to arrive,” he said. Malaysiakini had reported that containers in Port Klang were stacking up due to the MCO limiting the transport of non-essential goods
The situation led to a warning by the Federation of Malaysian Freight Forwarders (FMFF) that this was a potential "time bomb" affecting port efficiency and capacity.

The FMFF also called on the government to clarify if logistics services are considered essential services after freight forwarders complained about contradictory instructions by different government ministries following the announcement of the MCO.

The MCO came into effect on March 18 and has been extended to April 14.

In his statement today, Wee said this was decided during yesterday’s cabinet meeting and raised during the special ministers' meeting on enforcing the MCO.

“In light of that, corresponding actions at the ports must be taken fast so there is no congestion at warehouses surrounding the ports.

“Transport companies bringing the goods are permitted to carry out transfer work for 24 hours a day (during the three days),” said the minister.

Even so, he said the vehicles must abide by the stipulations set by the National Security Council (NSC) on March 18.

At the same time, Wee, who is also MCA president urged export to carry on to ensure continued supply chain of supplies to other countries in need of important goods from Malaysia. - Mkini

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