Matta thanks Express, depts for saving tourism
Published on: Monday, July 27, 2015
Kota Kinabalu: Quick action by Forestry and Land and Survey departments on a Daily Express expose on the felling of a riparian reserve in the heart of Sukau has raised cheers in the tourism industry. "We applaud the proactive action of Forestry Director Datuk Sam Mannan and the Land Office for springing to a decisive defence of our industry in face of an obvious loss of a keystone natural riparian forest wildlife habitat in Sukau," said Datuk KL Tan, Vice President Inbound of the Malaysian Association of Tours and Travel Agents (Matta). "It highlights the overwhelming legal muscles vested in State agencies to deter and punish decimators of natural river bank reserve forests once they start using their potent but little known legal mandates to protect precious natural resources," Tan said.
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He noted that with island tourism threatened by repeated kidnappings of the Abu Sayyaf and their sympathisers, mountain tourism affected by the June 5 eathquake that cost 18 climbers lives, the only worthwhile ecotourism bastion was the Kinabatangan floodplain famous for its proboscis monkeys and pygmy elephants. "The blatant riverside deforestation in the heart of Sukau had deeply troubled us but a courageous State agency Director and Daily Express has rekindled hope," Tan said. "Left unchecked, wildlife will vanish. The end of ecotourism neigh if this millions-year-old keystone natural riparian forest habitat in the lower Kinabatangan floodplain was also chopped off and recolonised by rubber and palm trees," Tan warned. "It can destroy destination Sukau completely.
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"Foreign kidnappers had hurt destination east coast, a disastrous natural earthquake had damaged center-piece destination Mt Kinabalu, now our own people clear and burn a world famous destination in Sukau to add to the misery," Tan lamented. The marketing of Sukau started in the late 1980s and today it is renowned as an ecotourism destination attracting tourists worldwide to Sandakan and Sukau.
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"The heart of wildlife/nature tourism lies in the old world natural forests situated on the banks of the river especially in the case of Lower Kinabatangan flood plains."This is the keystone habitat and natural feeding ground that sustain an incredibly rich and diverse cargo of charismatic animals which draw tourists from all corners of the world to see, especially a place like Sukau but what a potentially fatal blow from this latest wreck to such a prominent natural riparian forest."When there is no place left to take tourists to in Sabah, the industry may be one day be forced to live on out-bounds," Tan cautioned. A slew of resorts, lodges and homestay outfits and their buzzing nature tourism activities that had had been built up over the last 25 years, is employing a good size of local communities in Sukau."We hope the Director in charge of Department of Irrigation and Drainage (DID) will also activate the legal mandate given to that Office under Sections 41 & 42 to prevent and pre-empt any further natural vegetation along river banks from being removed, under the Sabah Water Resources Enactment 1998," Tan said. "And maybe this incident could become the first test case in the Special Environmental Court which the Chief Justice of Sabah and Sarawak, Tan Sri Richard Malanjum, has a hand in establishing in January this year. We take note that Culture, Tourism and Environment Minister Datuk Seri Panglima Masidi Manjun had also said he is serious about environmental protection. Meanwhile, Alexander Yee, President of Kita (Kinabatangan Corridor of Life Association comprising lodges and homestays), said: Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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