Flooding inside Penang airport ‘an embarrassment’

Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng wants the federal government to immediately resolve issues at the Penang International Airport.

PETALING JAYA: Transport Minister Kong Cho Ha has been urged to resolve the “flooding” at the Penang International Airport, which is proving to be an “embarrassment to the state government”.

In a is letter to Kong, Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said the “one inch of water floating inside the terminal” was akin to a state of “distress” and an “extreme embarrassment” to the country.

“I am sure the minister (Kong) will agree that it is an extreme embarrassment to the country to have one inch of water floating inside the terminal of an international airport.

“As the airport is the first impression people get of Penang and in many cases, of Malaysia, I strongly urge the minister to intervene directly to resolve this problem,” Lim said.

Lim’s letter to Kong was dated yesterday and a copy was released to the media.

In the letter, Lim also identified three major reasons that has led to the airport being in distress.

Among the major reasons is the delay in the airport expansion project.

Lim also pointed out that defective workmanship at the airport had contributed to the leakages and flooding.

“Whenever it rains, it will flood not only outside but up to one inch inside the airport terminal,” he said.

He added that this in turn caused massive inconvenience to countless airport users, but worse still, also damaged their luggage.

Lim also said that the situation in Penang International Airport is “extremely serious and reveals a systemic failure in the whole project”.