GEORGE TOWN: The Consumers’ Association of Penang (CAP) has urged the government to rescind its decision to dissolve the Malaysian Aviation Commission (MAVCOM).
The association is strongly against the decision by the Transport Ministry (MoT) to merge MAVCOM and the Civil Aviation Authority Malaysia (CAAM) and called on all parliamentarians to oppose any move to repeal the Malaysian Aviation Commission Act 2015.
Its president Mohideen Abdul Kader said the decision to dissolve MAVCOM and transfer its main functions to CAAM also showed the minister’s short-sightedness.
“Let us not forget that when CAAM was downgraded, the Institute of Malaysian and International Studies (IKMAS) of University Kebangsaan Malaysia came out to say that they had done studies on the regulatory body.
“They (IKMAS) found that CAAM lacked manpower (experienced engineers and pilots) and their staff were inexperienced and underpaid. IKMAS also said that the downgrade was partly due to MoT’s inability to make the necessary changes in CAAM so that they can function as they should.
“So why is a self-sufficient regulatory body that is functioning as it should be disbanded in favour of a regulatory body that is struggling, inefficient and incompetent, and CAAM comes under the purview of MoT,” he said in a statement today.
Mohideen said CAP believed that MAVCOM could function as a good check and balance to the ministry since the commission does not answer to the minister, but straight to Parliament.
“This is in line with the government’s policy to promote good governance and not by bringing it under the control of the ministry.
“They (MAVCOM) also do not get funding from the government but are funded by just RM1.00 from every outgoing airline passenger,” he said.
As a non-governmental organisation (NGO) dealing with consumer issues, he said it was CAP’s duty to ensure that the welfare of aviation consumers was well taken care of as MAVCOM ensures that the airlines and airports fulfil their obligations.
Mohideen said the concerns pointed by CAP in the statement were also highlighted in a letter, which the association sent to Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
The letter, he said, was sent earlier this week, in which the association hoped that a decision to merge or dissolve MAVCOM would not be taken to satisfy certain vested interests.
“We need to know why the ministry decided to kill MAVCOM instead of taking steps to improve CAAM by having it modelled along the lines of MAVCOM. What justification can the ministry give?”
The ministry had announced that the government would dissolve MAVCOM as the regulatory body’s main functions would be transferred to CAAM. It said the decision was made to rationalise the aviation industry and that it was approved by the cabinet on Wednesday.
MAVCOM had expressed dissatisfaction with the ministry’s decision to dissolve the commission and transfer some of its functions to CAAM as approved by the Cabinet.
