KOTA KINABALU: A task force has been set up to address issues affecting tourism in Semporna, says Sabah Tourism, Culture and Environment minister Datuk Jafry Arifin (pic).
Issues such as safety, cleanliness, licensing and a lack of coordination among local authorities have directly affected the image, security and sustainability of the tourism industry there, he added.
Jafry said in a statement on Monday (Dec 22) that the task force, headed by his Assistant Minister Dr Andi Rizal, would submit reports to the ministry every two weeks.
"This is to allow more focused and accountable action to be taken in stages," he said.
According to Jafry, the main objective is to solve the problems holistically via a systematic approach to coordinate the roles, jurisdiction and enforcement responsibilities among the various agencies and authorities.
"One of the main challenges that we see is the lack of coordination among agencies and authorities," he said.
As such, he said the ministry was taking a "sit down together, we can work together" approach by bringing all the parties involved together to address the issues.
The discussions would also involve the federal Tourism Arts and Culture Ministry, the Marine Department of Malaysia, Sabah's Ports and Harbours Department, the state Local Government and Housing Ministry, Eastern Sabah Security Command (Esscom), Tourism Malaysia, Semporna District office and Sabah Parks, he added.
He stressed that this task force was set up to create a better, more systematic, integrated tourism management system.
Jafry said that if the issues affecting tourism in Semporna were not addressed, it would affect the overall industry in the state.
As such, he urged all parties involved to be fully committed to solving the issues for the benefit of Sabah and its tourism industry.
Previously, there had been many complaints and reports on the rubbish problems in Semporna, long regarded as a gateway to diving and food havens.
There have also been a number of concerns about security raised over the years.
