Palawan traders told to abide: Governor

Kota Kinabalu: Palawan Governor Jose Alvarez (pic) said his province will respect the Sabah Government's decision to suspend barter trading activities while hoping that it will be lifted in due course.He said he understood Malaysia's reasons to suspend the activity considering the many cross-border kidnappings incidents in Sabah since 2000.

"Unless Malaysia reverses the decision, traders from Palawan have been strongly advised to comply, " he told Daily Express.

Alvarez, who was here on invitation to attend the Pesta Kaamatan celebration, said local traders in Palawan were affected by the decision resulting in prices of basic commodities like sugar, canned goods, household products and even rice sky-rocketing.

He said the affected parties are mostly small traders with revolving capital of between US50,000-US100,000 (RM200,00-300,000).

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Kota Kinabalu: The Sabah Government continued its momentum in managing the economy in line with the commitment and spirit of the Sabah Maju Jaya (SMJ) when it posted record high state revenue of RM6.973 billion last year.

"I wish the price normaliaation level will return with the lifting of the suspension order...the price increase should not be capitalised upon by Filipino traders to ignore the ban," he said.

Alvarez, who spoke in Malay, also assured that his administration would continue to work closely with Sabah to strengthen security in the region.

In this context, he would propose a meeting between Sabah's Esscom and its counterparts in Palawan to discuss how to effectively counter criminal gangs at sea.

He said strategies would also be planned on how to further educate the people of Sabah and Palawan on the importance of citizen participation, exchange of intelligence information and other crime preventive measures.

"I banned the use of high-powered engines on speedboats and other conventional sea transport (kumpit) in Palawan three months ago. We managed to arrest seven violators and impounded their engines."

"I dont see any logic in the operators using high-powered engines when ferrying passengers from island to island," he said.

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In a related issue, Alvarez said the realisation of the planned Kudat-Palawan ferry services would create numerous business opportunities for the people on both sides.

"We are hopeful that the operation will start on or before the middle of next year," he said.

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