MULTIMEDIA and Communications Minister Saifuddin Abdullah said some 270 riders have been hired to deliver Pos Malaysia’s backlog of parcels in Sarawak soon.

He said the backlog was due to no flights or very reduced frequency in flights by various airlines due to travel restrictions imposed during the movement control order (MCO) period.

He said prior to the imposition of the restrictions aimed at breaking the chain of Covid-19 transmissions, Pos Malaysia handled roughly 20,000 parcels per day in the state.

With the stoppage of flights, the number of parcels more than doubled to over 40,000 a day, Saifuddin said.

“Sometimes, they handled 45,000 parcels a day.”

Saifuddin said with airlines now increasing flights in the recovery MCO period, he is confident the backlog will be cleared soon.

He said the peninsula and Sabah are facing similar challenges.

In the peninsula, a similar number of riders have been hired to speed up deliveries.

Saifuddin said another problem Pos Malaysia faces is the lack of vehicles to make deliveries.

Therefore, Saifuddin said postmen will be allowed to use their own vehicles, under certain conditions, to carry out deliveries.

One of the conditions is that they must clearly identify themselves as Pos Malaysia staff, Saifuddin added. – July 10, 2020.