KUALA LUMPUR: The Transport Ministry is drafting a policy to establish the Malaysian Transport Safety Board (MTSB), its minister Anthony Loke said today in the Dewan Rakyat.
Loke said the proposal, first raised in 2018 during his previous tenure, had not proceeded after he left office but was now being reconsidered.
“For your information, it is indeed being considered at the ministry level. However, to set up a new body or agency, there are many lengthy processes.
“First, we have to prepare a Cabinet paper to obtain policy approval, which requires support from various parties,” he said in a reply to a supplementary question from Khairil Nizam Khirudin (PN-Jerantut) during Ministers Question Time.
He said establishing the MTSB would involve creating a new statutory body, setting up an agency, hiring staff, and addressing financial and human resource implications.
“Once we get policy approval from the Cabinet, a working committee will be set up to examine the details before drafting the bill, which must be tabled and passed in Parliament to allow the MTSB to be established in accordance with the law,” Loke said.
The establishment of the MTSB was first suggested by the Recommendation Review Panel (RRP) in 2018.
The minister said in 2018 that the MTSB would be able to investigate accidents in a more comprehensive manner.
He said at present, the police investigate the criminal aspects of an accident, while the technical side is handled by the Malaysian Institute of Road Safety Research (Miros).
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