KOTA KINABALU: The State Government will always support any proposal that is good for Sabah, Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman said.
Musa said this in response to the proposal by AirAsia’s Group CEO Tan Sri Tony Fernandes on the need to have the Low Cost Carrier Terminal (LCCT) here expanded so that the state’s tourism sector can grow.
Musa who was met after officiating at the seminar on ‘Sabah Furniture Industry – A potential Hub’ here yesterday, said the state government would have to look at the proposal.
“We can ask the relevant parties or departments, especially the Transport Ministry which are in charge, they have to look into it. If it is viable then why not? But first of all we must get the approval of the Transport Ministry and convince it that it is necessary,” Musa stressed.
“We will always support anything that is good for Sabah,” he added.
Tony when speaking at the Sabah International Business Luncheon Talk 2012 here last week, pointed out that “low cost is very important and we want Sabah to have the biggest low-cost carrier terminal (LCCT) in the Pacific ring,”
He believed the airport would be one of the critical areas Sabah needed to look at, especially as it has a huge potential to be the mid-point between Australia and north Asia where demand for low-cost air travel services was rapidly growing.
“We want people in Tokyo to open up the newspapers and say hey, we can go to Kota Kinabalu. And when they come, they will spread this by word of mouth. We also need to push, which is happening, the BIMP-EAGA as well. The tourism potential in the region is massive and AirAsia can play a part in that.
“There is a huge economic upside in making Sabah the biggest LCC hub in this part of the world. So, that’s something I would love and encourage,” Tony said.