The Penang Port Commission ( PPC) is a

statutory body A statutory body or statutory authority is a body set up by law (statute) that is authorised to implement certain legislation on behalf of the relevant country or state, sometimes by being Primary and secondary legislation, empowered or deleg ...

under the

Ministry of Transport A ministry of transport or transportation is a ministry responsible for transportation within a country. It usually is administered by the ''minister for transport''. The term is also sometimes applied to the departments or other government a ...

of the

Malaysian federal government The Government of Malaysia, officially the Federal Government of Malaysia (; Jawi: ), is based in the Federal Territory of Putrajaya, with the exception of the legislative branch, which is located in Kuala Lumpur. Malaysia is a federation comp ...

. Established in 1956, it serves as the

port authority A port authority (less commonly a port district) is a governmental or quasi-governmental public authority for a special-purpose district usually formed by a legislative body (or bodies) to operate ports and other transportation infrastructure. ...

for the

Port of Penang The Port of Penang is a deepwater seaport within the Malaysian state of Penang. It consists of terminals along the Penang Strait, including five in Seberang Perai and one in George Town. The Port of Penang was the third busiest harbour in Malay ...

, which includes Swettenham Pier in George Town.

History

In 1912, the Straits Settlements Legislative Council passed Ordinance No. V, which mandated the formation of

port authorities A port authority (less commonly a port district) is a governmental or quasi-governmental public authority for a special-purpose district usually formed by a legislative body (or bodies) to operate ports and other transportation infrastructure. ...

Penang Penang is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia along the Strait of Malacca. It has two parts: Penang Island, where the capital city, George Town, is located, and Seberang Perai on the Malay Peninsula. Th ...

and

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

. The ordinance received royal assent the following year. Harbour boards for both Penang and Singapore were officially established on 1 July 1913. Engineer

John Rumney Nicholson Sir John Rumney Nicholson, (25 March 1866 – 22 November 1939) was a British engineer. Biography Nicholson was born at Langwathby in 1866, the son of Isaac Nicholson, and was educated at St Bees School. His family was stated to be from Bolton ...

was appointed as the first chairman of the boards, which were structured as corporate entities responsible for the collection of revenues owed to the

British Crown The Crown is a political concept used in Commonwealth realms. Depending on the context used, it generally refers to the entirety of the State (polity), state (or in federal realms, the relevant level of government in that state), the executive ...

, as well as managing sinking funds for seaport development, interest payments and future loans. In 1924, the Penang Harbour Board (PHB) acquired the cross-strait ferry service between George Town and Province Wellesley (now

Seberang Perai Seberang Perai is a city in the Malaysian state of Penang. Located on the Malay Peninsula and separated from Penang Island by the Penang Strait, it shares borders with Kedah to the north and east and Perak to the south. The city spans an are ...

). After

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, maritime trade in

British Malaya The term "British Malaya" (; ) loosely describes a set of states on the Malay Peninsula and the island of Singapore that were brought under British Empire, British hegemony or control between the late 18th and the mid-20th century. Unlike the ...

rebounded, causing increased congestion at seaports. In response, the new Malayan federal government formed the Federal Ports Committee to evaluate seaport operations. Port consultant E. A. Lewis advised the federal government to create a port commission that would include representatives from the federal and Penang governments, the municipalities of George Town and Butterworth, the

Malayan Railway Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB) (; Jawi script, Jawi: ) or colloquially referred to simply as KTM, is the main rail operator in Peninsular Malaysia. The railway system dates back to the British colonial era, when it was first built to tra ...

and the

private sector The private sector is the part of the economy which is owned by private groups, usually as a means of establishment for profit or non profit, rather than being owned by the government. Employment The private sector employs most of the workfo ...

. The commission was to serve as the new

for the Port of Penang and assume ownership of all assets belonging to the PHB, along with the Malayan Railway facilities at

Perai Perai is a suburb of Seberang Perai in the States and federal territories of Malaysia, Malaysian state of Penang. It lies at the southern bank of the Perai River and borders Butterworth, Seberang Perai, Butterworth to the north. The area now know ...

. By the end of 1955, the

Federal Legislative Council The Federal Legislative Council (also known simply as the Legislative Council) was the legislative body of the Federation of Malaya and the predecessor of the Malaysian Parliament. It was formed in 1948 after the abolition of the Malayan Union an ...

enacted the Penang Port Commission (PPC) Ordinance. This allowed for the establishment of the PPC on 1 January 1956. The PPC was headed by a chairman appointed by the Malayan King, a

general manager A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...

, and between five and seven federal appointees. It took control of the PHC's assets and the Malayan Railway port infrastructure at Perai, in addition to managing the ferry service and overseeing future seaport developments. Upon the PPC's establishment,

James Wilfred Jefford James Wilfred Jefford CB, CBE (22 March 1901 – 1 January 1980) was the first Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Pakistan Navy, serving from its inception in 1947 until 1953. Most of his early career was in the Royal Indian Navy. Jefford served ...

, the former Commander-in-Chief of the

Pakistan Navy The Pakistan Navy (PN) (; ''romanized'': Pākistān Bahrí'a; ) is the naval warfare branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The Chief of the Naval Staff, a four-star admiral, commands the navy and is a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Com ...

, was appointed as its first chairman. The ordinance was amended twice by the

federal Parliament The Parliament of Australia (officially the Parliament of the Commonwealth and also known as the Federal Parliament) is the federal legislature of Australia. It consists of three elements: the monarch of Australia (represented by the governor ...

, first in 1959 and again in 1974. The 1974 amendment increased the number of federal appointees to a maximum of nine.

Privatisation

Following the

privatisation Privatization (rendered privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation w ...

of the PPC, in 1994, Penang Port Sdn Bhd (PPSB), a

government-linked company A state-owned enterprise (SOE) is a business entity created or owned by a national or local government, either through an executive order or legislation. SOEs aim to generate profit for the government, prevent private sector monopolies, provide goo ...

under the Minister of Finance (Incorporated), became the licensed

port operator A port operator is a port authority or company that contracts with the port authority to move cargo through a port at a contracted minimum level of productivity. They may be state-owned (particularly for port authorities) or privately run. The wo ...

of the

. Under the Ports Privatisation Act 1990 (PPA), PPSB took over the management of daily port operations, including cargo handling and marine services, as well as the ferry service and cruise arrivals at Swettenham Pier. The PPC retains its regulatory role as the port authority of the Port of Penang. In 2014, PPSB was acquired by Seaport Terminal (Johore), owned by Syed Mokhtar Albukhary. In 2017, PPSB was sold to MMC Corporation, which was also majority-owned by Syed Mokhtar. The privatisation of the PPC was met with substantial criticism from the

Pakatan Rakyat Pakatan Rakyat (PR; ) was an informal Malaysian political coalition and successor to Barisan Alternatif (BA). The political coalition was formed by the People's Justice Party (PKR), Democratic Action Party (DAP), and Pan-Malaysian Islamic Par ...

and later

Pakatan Harapan Pakatan Harapan (PH; stylised as HARAPAN; ) is a Malaysian Parliamentary group, political coalition consisting of Centre-left politics, centre-left political parties which was formed in 2015 to succeed the Pakatan Rakyat coalition. It has led ...

state administrations. Concerns arose that Seaport Terminal's control would reduce the Port of Penang to a feeder for

Johor Johor, also spelled Johore,'' is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia in the south of the Malay Peninsula. It borders with Pahang, Malacca and Negeri Sembilan to the north. Johor has maritime borders with Singapore ...

's seaports. Seaport Terminal's proposed dredging of the

Penang Strait The Penang Strait is an 11 kilometre-wide strait that separates Penang Island from mainland Malay Peninsula. Penang Island is to the west of the channel, while Seberang Perai, the mainland half of the State of Penang, is to the east. The northe ...

did not materialise, with analysts speculating that the project was taken over by MMC instead.

References

{{reflist

External links

Official website
Transport in Penang 1956 establishments in Malaya Port authorities Government agencies established in 1956 1956 establishments in British Malaya Federal ministries, departments and agencies of Malaysia Ministry of Transport (Malaysia)

History

Privatisation

See also

References

External links