KOTA KINABALU – New Sabah Times, one of Sabah's main English newspapers, may be on the verge of closing down due to funding difficulties, insiders say.
A staff meeting has been called this Thursday by the newspaper's managing company, Inna Kinabalu, supposedly to draw out the company's winding-up strategy.
However, its top officials are still negotiating with shareholders to keep the company afloat, a source from the company told The Vibes.
"Everything is still unclear. We will only know our future after Thursday," the source said on condition of anonymity.
Closure of the paper would mean that at least 50 staff members, including the editorial team, will be out of work by the end of this month.
This is not the first time the newspaper has been rumoured to be shutting for good.
In 2018, speculation had circulated that New Sabah Times would close following the collapse of the Barisan Nasional (BN) state government.
The paper has also been reportedly facing financial problems for years.
The paper was founded as Sabah Times in 1949 by Donald Stephens, who would later become Sabah's first chief minister after gaining independence from Britain.
Sabah Times then combined with the North Borneo News and became known as North Borneo News and Sabah Times.
The paper changed its name again in 1969 to Kinabalu Sabah Times but reverted to its original name in 1979.
Publication of Sabah Times ended on March 25, 1995. On March 8, 1998, the newspaper was resurrected as New Sabah Times by Inna Kinabalu Sdn Bhd.
The paper's editor-in-charge, Chong Su Yaw, could not be reached for comment. – The Vibes, December 8, 2020
