Batam ferry

Batam ferry

Commenting on the complaint made by the Secretary of Singapore
Bike Hash (The Jakarta Post, Aug. 30), may I, as the general
manager of the Teluk Senimba Ferry Terminal in Batam, give the
following explanation:

1. The group from Singapore with return tickets arrived on Aug.
25 in Batam and were to return on the last trip at 7:30 p.m.
Batam time.

2. The group of 49 people returned to the terminal not as one
group but in smaller groups. The first group arrived at 7:35 p.m
and the last group at 7:45 p.m.. Each member of the group carried
his or her own bike and passport.

3. Meanwhile, at 7:35 p.m., 29 passengers (outside the Singapore
Bike Hash group) were ready for departure on the Falcon-1 ship. I
decided that the ship should leave without waiting for the
Singapore Bike Hash group because:

a. The time was already 7:35 p.m., which meant that the departure
time of 7:30 p.m. had passed.

b. The ship's captain had to leave on time, because arriving late
would involve a sanction by MPA Singapore.

c. The 29 passengers already on board had complained about any
further delay.

d. If the 49 passengers of the Singapore Bike Hash had been
served, the embarkation process would have taken at least 45
minutes. The ship would then have left at 8:20 p.m. at the
earliest.

4. I apologized to the group leader. I could not help to do
otherwise because the group arrived late.

5. Assistance was given to the group to spend the night at
Waterfront City (Camp Bravo), and the next morning, Aug. 26, the
group was given priority to board the first ferry.

6. On Aug. 26 the whole group, with their bikes, left on two
ships at 8 a.m. and arrived in Singapore at 9:45 a.m. Singapore
time.

S. POERNOMO

Batam