Immigration Services Union of Peninsular Malaysia (KPISM) president Ajeet Singh said even though Tenaga Nasional Bhd had given notice earlier of a power supply disruption and prepared 10 generators, repeated damage to the generators had resulted in a prolonged blackout.
“TNB should have had a backup plan and a first and second contingency plan to avoid such a situation,” he said in a statement today.
Ajeet cited the example of a similar power outage at the Woodlands checkpoint last year, and how Singapore’s Immigration and Checkpoint Authority handled the matter.
He noted that as immediate steps were taken to restore power supply, the ICA had also swiftly activated its contingency plan and managed traffic, working with Malaysian authorities to reroute vehicles towards the second link.
Following the Oct 9, 2022 incident, the ICA said it had implemented contingency measures, without compromising security, to clear arriving vehicles and travellers already on the Causeway towards the Woodlands checkpoint or within the checkpoint.
“To better manage arriving traffic, the old Woodlands checkpoint was also opened and additional ICA officers were deployed there to facilitate immigration clearance,” the statement had read.
“Radio broadcasts, the Expressway Monitoring & Advisory System, and ICA’s Facebook were activated and constantly updated to inform travellers who had plans to use the Woodlands checkpoint.”
Ajeet said his union’s sentiments echo Johor menteri besar Onn Hafiz Ghazi, who had said the incident was embarrassing for the state, and also jeopardised the nation’s credibility in its crisis management in high-security government facilities.
“KPISM hopes that this will not recur, as it involves the nation’s image and security. All parties must learn from this incident and draw up a risk management contingency plan,” he said.
He also said a risk management team for the nation’s entry points should be established to draw up emergency plans, and the actions to be taken in unforeseen circumstances.
“If there was a plan, why was it not activated? Who should be held accountable?” he said.