THE Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA) has called on the nation’s Transport Ministry to decree whether AirAsia must relocate its operations from Terminal 2 to the main terminal at Kota Kinabalu International Airport (KKIA).
Tan Kok Liang, vice president of MATTA said: “The continued feud between Malaysia Airports Holdings (MAH) and AirAsia with no solution in sight has caused discomfort to passengers using KKIA Terminal 2. We are using a terminal that is unable to sustain the carrying capacity, resulting in overcrowding and infrastructure strain.
“There are no goods and services tax (GST) counters for tax refund under the Tourists Refund Scheme, causing disappointment to tourists departing from KKIA Terminal 2. But more worrisome is that we are compromising our security by mixing international and domestic passengers at the terminal”, said Tan.
MATTA pointed out in a press release that Abdul Aziz Kaprawi, Malaysia’s deputy transport minister, had earlier disclosed that relocation was set for January 1 this year, but was delayed pending the outcome of several applications made by the budget carrier.
“Passengers are made to suffer under horrendous conditions at the old Terminal 2. To add insult to injury, a six per cent GST is charged for atrocious facilities,” added Tan.
“Malaysians, particularly Sabahans, are ashamed that tourists have to put up with the inconveniences at the dilapidated Terminal 2. We have waited patiently for some years for the Ministry of Transport and AirAsia to find a mutually acceptable solution but it appears that the ministry is indecisive.”
