Ferry operator blamed for Bakauheni incident
Oyos Saroso H.N., The Jakarta Post, Bandarlampung
Ferry operator and security guards in the Bakauheni seaport, Lampung, were blamed for an incident on Tuesday that killed three persons who were in a car entering the Duta Banten ferry.
Head of the Lampung chapter of the Indonesian Consumers Foundation (YLKI) Subadrayani Mursalin said on Thursday that the incident in which a car plummeted into the sea was the failure of the ship operator and the security guards.
"The state owned riverboat transportation firm PT ASDP must be held responsible. Why is there no security assurance for cars that will enter the ferry?" Subadrayani asked.
He was commenting on the incident at the Bakauheni seaport, wherein a Suzuki Carry BE 2535 AU plunged into the water on Tuesday.
Witnesses said the car's engine was suddenly off when it was about to enter the ship. The car moved backward and plunged into the 8-meter deep water as there were no barriers on the background.
The incident occurred also because no ship crews were guiding the driver into the ship, they said.
Passengers in the car desperately tried to save themselves. Unfortunately, three of the 12 passengers died, trapped inside the car.
They were identified as Atang Suryana, 50, Munawaroh, 40, and their son Abib, four-and-half-a-years old.
The injured were taken to the Kalianda Hospital in South Lampung.
The ill-fated car was on its way from the village of Sukarame, Natar subdistrict of South Lampung. The family was on the way to Salatiga, Central Java, to attend the wedding ceremony of Atang Suryana's son.
Security guard Suparman acknowledged he was stunned when the car moved backward and plummeted into the sea.
"I was around the gangway, monitoring the ships," he said.
It was reported earlier that the association of the riverboat transportation operators (Gapasdaf) had threatened to stage a massive strike if the authority did not meet its demand to increase ferry fares up to 79 percent.
Passengers said that the security and service of the ferry operators was inadequate. They said the seats and rooms for passengers were very dirty.
"I would like to stay in my car if I drive," said Yuliardi, 37, an electronics businessman from Tanjungkarang, Bandar Lampung.
He said most of the ferries that serve the Bakauheni-Merak route provided almost no clean water.
A lecturer in transportation from the University of Lampung, Nairobi, said it was time to overhaul the transportation system.
"It needs new investment. The old ships must be replaced with new ones. Security and maintenance must be improved," said Nairobi.
Despite the demand for a fare rise on Monday, the ferry operators still charged normal fares as of Thursday. But the number of ships that operate on the route has been reduced from the usual 24 to 18.
The condition has created long lines of people waiting for tickets.
Seaport crewmen confirmed that six ships were not operating because of minor damage.