Relax - Crying foul over Thai passenger vans

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RANTAU PANJANG - Five Thai passenger vans carrying 40 Westerners to Kota Baru were blocked for two hours by angry local taxi drivers at the Immigration, Customs and Quarantine complex here yesterday.

The drivers claimed the Thais were robbing them of their income by ferrying the foreign citizens from several countries across the border.

About 50 drivers stopped the vans just after they exited the complex at 7.30am and refused to budge even after enforcement officers, including police, were called to the scene to stop the commotion.

The incident only ended when Rantau Panjang member of parliament Siti Zailah Mohd Yusoff arrived and calmed the locals down.

She asked them to let the vans proceed with their journey and promised to find a solution to the problem.

It is believed the vans were chartered by the foreigners to enable them to renew their visas at the Thai Consulate in Pengkalan Chepa, Kota Baru.

Siti Zailah later held an hour-long meeting with representatives from the Road Transport and Immigration departments and the Rantau Panjang Taxi Drivers Association.

She said the situation might turn for the worse the next time if no immediate solution to the taxi drivers' complaints was found.

"The issue of Thai vehicles bringing passengers across the border has been going on for quite some time and the issue has been raised in Parliament.

"I hope the authorities will do something about it as it is jeopardising the livelihood of local taxi drivers. This is not only happening in Rantau Panjang, but also in other states bordering Thailand."

Taxi driver Che Abdul Rahim Che Razak said the problem started in 2003, adding that local taxi operators had suffered losses amounting to thousands of ringgit monthly.

"Fewer passengers crossing the border are taking our taxis as they prefer to take the vans, mostly from Sungai Golok.

"We hope the Road Transport Department will step up their checks against these foreign vehicles."

Another driver, Mohd Zain Sabri, said their income had been badly affected by the intrusion of the foreign vehicles into the country.

"We have been finding it hard to survive since the vans enter the country freely. Previously, I can get about RM70 (S$29) or RM80 daily, but it is difficult to get even RM20 now."

Crying foul over Thai passenger vans

New Straits Times | Thu, Feb 4 2010

Angry Malaysian taxi drivers blocked five Thai passenger vans carrying 40 Westerners to Kota Baru for two hours.

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bus

passenger