GEORGE TOWN — Reeling from a drastic slump in travellers and hospitality guests, the country’s tourism players are disappointed by the lack of support for the industry in Budget 2021 during this trying period.
Although the finance ministry may have meant well by channelling RM80 million to retrain airline staff retrenched due to Covid-19, leaders in the sector said the overall allocation for tourism has fallen short of expectation.
Malaysian Association of Hotels (MAH) CEO Yap Lip Seng said that the hospitality industry is concerned with the lack of immediate assistance to hoteliers.
He said the government needs to acknowledge the indicators of a downturn in the hotel business and that the industry is in need of fast assistance.
“So far from the announced initiatives under Budget 2021, little was mentioned on sustaining tourism other than the extension of wage subsidy at the same amount of RM600 per employee per month which the industry had long voiced that it is insufficient when it had lost almost 80% of business," he said in a statement.
Overall, Malaysia’s hotel occupancy fell to an unprecedented low in March at approximately five percent when the movement control order (MCO) was implemented.
It slowly picked up and peaked at 42% over the Merdeka Day weekend at the end of August with rooms offered at compromised rates.
Discounts and promotions introduced by hotels to capture the domestic tourism market contributed to a drop of average daily hotel room rates of between 30% and 70%.
A recent survey reported a drop in occupancy rates, with the spike in Covid-19 cases at the end of September 2020. The overall occupancy dipped to 35% in the first week of October, to 30% in the second week of the month and eventually to only 20% in the last week.
Kedah / Perlis MAH chapter chairman Eugene Dass urged the government to convince utility companies like Tenaga Nasional Berhad to provide subsidies and local authorities to offer discounts on licensing fees.
The budget is supposed to revitalise the economy and make it enduring while allowing existing government packages to continue, he said.
The industry, however, needs more help, he stressed.
Government must understand tourism players’ suffering
Tourism Langkawi chairman Ahmad Pishol Isahak called for more dialogue between the players and the government to enable the latter to comprehend the type of suffering that the operators are facing due to the pandemic.
"There is nothing new (in the budget), nothing which stands out that industry players can clinch on for hope of better days in the future," he said.
Langkawi Businesses Association deputy chairman Datuk Alexander Issac said that more can be done to sustain the leisure industry other than helping the airlines.
While the association is grateful for the incentives accorded, they are inadequate to revitalise the sector in the face of global competition from other destinations, he said.
Penang MAH veteran Khoo Boo Lim echoed his counterparts’ concerns. He stressed that tourism is a major economic contributor and generated 3.5 million jobs last year.
"If we neglect it, a crippled industry can derail growth," he said. — The Vibes, November 6, 2020.
