Isu tiket mahal: Pemimpin PAS Sabah kemuka cadangan

PAS Sabah chief Mustaman Mustain has proposed several government initiatives to tackle the rising costs of air travel to East Malaysia, particularly for low-income groups. Speaking to The Borneo Post, Mustain emphasized that air travel has become a basic necessity for the people of Sabah, especially those with low incomes who need to travel for work, education, and emergencies.

Among the proposed measures, Mustain suggested establishing a special hardship fund for family emergencies, expanding the holiday season flight subsidy beyond peak times like school and semester breaks, reserving special flight capacity at lower prices for critical routes during peak periods, and offering early booking or standby for important routes such as those connecting Kuala Lumpur with Kota Kinabalu, Sandakan, and Tawau.

He also proposed creating a system to monitor sudden price hikes more quickly to enable prompt action.

Mustain explained that a hardship fund for family emergencies could assist those who have to cancel their travel due to exorbitantly high ticket prices. He cited an incident where a prominent family in his hometown had to stay away for nearly two months because of skyrocketing ticket prices, while students worried about not being able to return to their respective universities. "This shows that the issue of high air travel costs has a direct impact on people's lives," Mustain stated.