Focus on attracting more domestic tourists – Masidi
KOTA KINABALU: Tourism industry players should focus on reeling in more domestic tourists into Sabah, urged Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Seri Panglima Masidi Manjun.
He said the decline in value of the ringgit would not only attract the obvious foreign tourists but also provide an opportunity to cater for domestic tourists.
The Minister reiterated that arrivals into Sabah was 3.24 million last year with foreign tourist arrival growing by 15.4% compared to the previous year.
“Domestic arrivals was also good but I think we need to do more. I believe as the ringgit value goes down we will have more foreign tourists, but on the same note, it will also be a good time for locals to reevaluate the expenditure of their annual holiday,” he said.
“That means there is big potential for us to have more West Malaysians and Sarawakians to visit Sabah because of the rather low ringgit at the moment. So I hope effort will be done to bring in more domestic tourists.
“They are as good as foreign tourists, they are good paymasters and, most importantly, they are the saviours during difficult times,” he asserted at the Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA) Sabah Annual Dinner 2017 on Friday.
Masidi reminded industry players not to only focus on profit but also to lay down rules to safeguard the industry’s integrity for the reference of future players.
“More importantly I think we need to strengthen the fundamentals of the rules so that the future players will not only be able to partake in the industry but probably be able to make more money as what you’re doing now.
“I really urge you to ensure safety is the paramount consideration when we deal with tourists. Profit is important but it should come with responsibility.
“It is not just about getting the money but we are also entrusted with their lives and we should make sure this trust is not broken,” he emphasized.
Sabah Tourism Board chairman Datuk Joniston Bangkuai, Ministry of Tourism and Culture Sabah Office director Ag Ahmad Zaki Abu Bakar, MATTA Inbound and Domestic vice president Datuk K L Tan and organizing chairman Lawrence Chin were also at the dinner.