LABUAN: Member of Parliament Datuk Suhaili Abdul Rahman earlier strongly objected to the Nov 4 to 8 “Test & Tune” motor sports festival because the venue was not designed for such purpose has given the nod but with conditions – that the event be shifted to the Halal Hub at Kiamsam which is under the LC jurisdiction.
“I have received many complaints fearing noise pollution and possible traffic jams due to key road closure and the returns from the event participated by mostly local and mainland bikers with low cc engines.
“I changed my mind because the association sponsoring the event had made advance arrangements and hordes of eager bikers were already on the way here.”He stressed that during the event he had requested for the the ambulance and Fire and Rescue departments to be on standby at the site.
He said he would have 100pc support if the event was like MotorGP held on national or international level with attractive prizes and extensive publicity for Labuan.
“Such an event would help boost Labuan’s image,” he said.
The earlier proposed site was the 5.1 km key coastal road, a route which bypasses heavy traffic along Jln Tun Mustapha.
It runs from Membedai to Tg Aru and during the event would have been closed to traffic. The coastal road is under Federal.
The event triggered pros and cons comments in chat groups with some saying it should be given a chance as it could evolve into a major motor sports event in future.
Others see it as a nuisance and doubtful economic benefit. Not long ago a similar event was held at a KK beach with a pile of debris to be collected the next day.