KOTA KINABALU: Sabah DAP chairman and Kota Kinabalu member of parliament Jimmy Wong has urged Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri Joseph Pairin Kitingan to resign as Minister of Infrastructure Development for the latter’s failure to address the safety problems plaguing the railway system in the state.
“Tan Sri Pairin must resign as the Minister of Infrastructure Development for his failure to address the Sabah Railway Department (SRD) system after two train accidents had happened in the same place within two years.
“Sabah DAP also wants Tan Sri Pairin to issue a public apology following the tragedy which has directly affected the image of Sabah,” said Wong yesterday at the scene of the latest accident on Wednesday involving a train and a car which claimed the life of a tourist from Hong Kong.
The 5.35pm accident at Jalan Lintas-Putatan traffic intersection also saw three family members travelling with the deceased in the Hyundai car suffering injuries.
Eddie Lok Wing Tak, 51, a tourist from Hong Kong succumbed to injuries at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital I (QEH I) around 11.30pm, about six hours after the incident.
His injured family members were admitted to Queen Elizabeth Hospital II (QEH II), where they were reported to be in stable condition.
The four tourists who are family members were on their way to the airport in the Hyundai car when it was hit by the three-carriage train near the Petagas flyover.
Lok was initially pinned at the driver’s seat and it took about an hour for the Fire and Rescue personnel to free him by removing the driver side door.
The victims were on their way to the airport to catch a flight home when the train, which was heading to Papar from Tanjung Aru, hit the car that was believed to be driven over the railway track.
Meanwhile, Wong said based on initial report, the railway officers instructed the victim’s vehicle to stop as a train was approaching.
“We were made to understand that the railway officers waved towards all the vehicles, including the victim’s vehicle to stop as the train was approaching.
“This just shows that the automatic railway gates, at all four road crossings, were not functioning at that time, which forces the railway officers to have to manually signal to vehicles to stop.
“We were also made to understand that the automatic railway gates have not been functioning for nearly six months before the incident happened,” he said.
“This is unacceptable and Sabah DAP wants Tan Sri Pairin and the Sabah Railway Department director to take full responsibility for what had happened on that ill-fated day,” said Wong.
Also present yesterday were Kepayan assemblyman Dr Edwin Bosi and Sri Tanjung assemblyman Chan Foong Hin.