Nature tour guides, besides looking after the safety of tourists under their care, are usually passionate about the well-being of wild animals.
Did a viral video show a tour guide getting punched for allegedly advising a local man against feeding wild monkeys in Kota Belud, Sabah?
VERDICT:
TRUE
Sabah Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Jafry Arifin said an investigation has been launched into the alleged assault by a local who was angered by a tourist guide who advised him not to feed the monkeys.
According to the alleged victim Alex Chin, he was bringing visitors on a river cruise in Kota Belud, an hour away from Kota Kinabalu, on Saturday (Aug 8) in a video posted on social media.
Along the way, Chin approached the local man to advise him against feeding wild monkeys for safety reasons
“I introduced myself as a guide and told him that there were certain rules and regulations to follow when dealing with wildlife species, including feeding them, however kind the intention may be,” he claimed.
However, the man allegedly got angry and steered his boat towards the tour boat to attack Chin by punching him in the face and threatened him.
A few other crewmen later intervened and stopped the matter from escalating.
Jafry also advised locals to be mindful of their actions without acting recklessly and resulting in incidents that could harm and tarnish the image of the country.
Luyang assemblyman Samuel Wong urged for a thorough investigation to be taken, adding that feeding wildlife is inadvisable as they might get used to depending on humans and approach people in future.
“This might cause conflicts among humans and animals, which could lead to harm amongst both men and animals in uncontrolled conditions,” he said.
Wong said it was clear that the tour guide was only trying to carry out his responsibilities by giving friendly advice to the local man, and that there was no need for any violence in this alleged matter.
