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KUALA LUMPUR – Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin has expressed hope that procedures to allow workers to resume their daily commute between Malaysia and Singapore can be finalized soon.
This was one of some of the issues discussed during a courtesy call from Singapore’s High Commissioner to Malaysia, Mr. Vanu Gopala Menon, about Tan Sri Muhyiddin at his office in Putrajaya on Thursday (September 3).
“I hope that Malaysia and Singapore will quickly finalize standard operating procedures related to the proposal to allow the daily movement of workers between the two countries, in line with efforts to boost the national economy and help workers who have been affected,” he said Muhyiddin. in a Facebook post Thursday.
Before the Covid-19 pandemic, more than 300,000 travelers used the Causeway every day. Among them were some 100,000 Malaysians who commuted daily between Singapore and Malaysia.
Muhyiddin said that they had also talked about the implementation of the Reciprocal Green Lane (RGL) and the Periodic Travel Agreement (PCA) on the Singapore-Malaysia border, which began on August 17.
He said they both agreed that the implementation of the two arrangements has been smooth and effective.
“We also declare our commitment to ensure that the movement of people and border control continue smoothly without neglecting the security aspect of the two countries.”
The RGL facilitates short-term travel for essential commercial or official purposes between both parties for a maximum of 14 days.
The PCA allows residents of Singapore and Malaysia who have long-term immigration passes for business and employment purposes in the other country to enter that country for work.
The arrangements allow employers to travel for essential meetings and give workers the opportunity to see their families more often.
“We are confident that the measures will help Malaysia and Singapore to gradually restore their economies and the interaction of people affected by the Covid-19 pandemic,” Muhyiddin said.
He described the bilateral relations as “growing positively” despite both countries going through a challenging period.
“We believe that Malaysia and Singapore have the experience, capacity and knowledge to overcome the long-term threat of the pandemic,” he said.
He added that both countries should cooperate in the research and development of a Covid-19 vaccine, and in the fields of epidemiology, antivirals and public health, which would ultimately benefit both countries.
On the high-speed train (HSR) project, which has been postponed until the end of the year, he expressed his hope that the two countries would soon hold a ministerial-level meeting to discuss its direction.
For the annual leadership retreat session, which was scheduled to be hosted by Singapore this year, he said officials from the two countries would discuss and propose a suitable approach to holding the session or find an alternative.
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