KOTA KINABALU: Sabah authorities will check regulatory and safety compliance following the death of a Chinese tourist while snorkelling at Mengalum Island on Sept 23.
State Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Jafry Ariffin (pic) said the checks would cover the operator, vessel, tourism activities and facilities involved.
This includes whether relevant licences and approvals were valid, safety procedures were followed, adequate equipment and supervision provided, and emergency procedures observed.
“If any violation or non-compliance is subsequently established, I expect the authority with the relevant enforcement jurisdiction to take appropriate action in accordance with the law,” he said in a statement Saturday (Sept 26).
Jafry said the police investigation should first be allowed to establish the circumstances and cause of the tourist’s death.
According to Kota Kinabalu police, the Chinese national, who was in her 30s, was among 17 tourists who travelled to Mengalum Island.
Initial information showed that she had been snorkelling for about 15 minutes in waters approximately 1.5m deep when a boat crew member monitoring the group saw her floating unconscious.
She was brought ashore and given cardiopulmonary resuscitation but did not respond and was subsequently pronounced dead.
Police forensic personnel found no indication of foul play at the scene and the case was classified as sudden death.
Jafry said it would be premature to link the incident to the status of any licence, land, Temporary Occupation Licence (TOL), structure or facility when no such connection had been established.
He was responding to questions raised by Tanjung Aru assemblyman Datuk Junz Wong and Luyang assemblyman Samuel Wong over safety, licensing, land status and enforcement at the island.
“These are legitimate matters for the relevant authorities to verify. However, it is equally important to distinguish between matters already established and those that remain under investigation,” he said.
Jafry said tour operating and travel agency licensing came under the federal Tourism, Arts and Culture Ministry, while vessel requirements, local authority approvals and land matters fell under their respective authorities.
Questions over the land and TOL status of the facilities involved would also be checked against official records, he added.
The Sabah Government Gazette records that 93.786ha of state land on Mengalum Island was declared a reserve for preservation and conservation purposes under Section 28 of the Land Ordinance.
However, Jafry said this did not by itself determine the legal status of the particular site, landing point or tourism facilities involved in the incident.
“We should not declare a TOL invalid, a structure illegal or an operation unauthorised until the agencies holding the relevant records have established the facts,” he said.
He said the incident should also be used to determine whether improvements were needed in marine tourism safety, enforcement, operator compliance and emergency response.
“If gaps are identified, they must be corrected. If laws or licence conditions have been breached, the appropriate authority must act,” he said.
