The apron of the budget airline terminal KLIA2 was once again "ponding" with water after heavy rain, amid ongoing repair works as promised by the Ministry of Transport (MOT).

"MOT had instructed MAHB to repair it as soon as possible," Transport Minister Liow Tiong Lai told a press conference after visiting the apron.

Speaking at a press conference to announce the members of the KLIA2 Independent Audit Committee, Liow said the committee has been told to complete its report by the first half of the coming year.

"I will give them few months to conduct a thorough investigation on KLIA2's apron and on the safety issues.

"After the first half of the year, I will expect the report from the audit committee. I will take action on whatever the report states," Liow said after a visit to the airport in Sepang, Selangor.

According to field observations, some areas at the apron still ponding with water, with seven small areas identified, for which repairs will be carried out soon.

"After visiting, I noticed that the repairing works are ongoing, most of those involving (ponding) areas have been noted. But these are just some glitches, not a serious safety issue.

"The Transport Ministry has instructed MAHB to take immediate action to ensure that no such issues take place again. I am sure MAHB will make the repairs as soon as possible," Liow added.

'Strict action if there's any misdoing'

Asked whether any problem had been identified by the airport contractor, Liow said strict action would be taken if any misdoing was found.

He said the audit report by the independent committee would be made public to ensure transparency and accountability.

The KLIA2 Independent Audit Committee will be headed by Federation of Engineering Institutions of Asia and Pacific (FEIAP) president Chuah Hean Teik and has three other members.

The four other members are Department of Civil Aviation director general Azharuddin Abd Rahman, Public Works Department director-general Annies Md Ariff, G&P Professionals Sdn Bhd chief executive officer Gue See Sew and Petronas general manager M Shobri Abu Bakar.

Meanwhile, Liow also called the MAHB to respond to any query from the Public Accounts Committee's on the KLIA2 issues.

“They (MAHB) have to answer all the queries by the PAC. I, as minister of transport, will also overlook to ensure that all public queries will be taken seriously and accountably,” Liow said.

On the other hand, MAHB managing director Badlisham Ghazali ( left ) refused to reveal the cost of the repairs and instead only said MAHB runs all 39 airports in Malaysia.

Asked about the deadline for the work on KLIA2, Badlisham said that the last bits of work on KLIA2 would be completed by 2016, including the maintenance and repair work.

“We have done almost 25 percent of the repairs and we still have 75 percent to complete. You see the (ponding) water reducing, which means the repair jobs are successful. ”

On the PAC queries on KLIA2, he said that MAHB sincerely accepts all the recommendations and comments by PAC in its reports.

“Please wait. We will response to PAC after studying their report,” Badlisham said.

He also said MAHB has already sent the Ikram Premier Consulting report to PAC, as it requested.