State govt mulls subsidy to reduce airport charges

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MIRI: Air connectivity and high airport charges have always been among the major problems in developing the tourism industry in Sarawak even though the state has numerous unique products that could attract more tourists’ arrival.

MRP GRANT: Chan (second right) presenting a grant to Mariam Monek who represented Miri Education Department in the presence of the department's staff. Also present is Councillor Koh Ek Chong (right), chairman of the Public Complaints Bureau of SUPP Miri.

Deputy Chief Minister and Minister of Tourism and Heritage, Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Dr George Chan said in view of these obstacles, the state government would relentlessly find solutions to the problems and expect all the tourism players to play their part.

He said with regard to the high airport taxes, Sarawak might consider subsidy in reducing the charges imposed by Malaysia Airports Holding Bhd (MAHB) on passengers of low cost carrier, AirAsia.

“MAHB and AirAsia ought to sit down with the state government to look into the matter so that it will become a win-win situation.

“We can’t absorb the costs for the long term, probably we can subsidise only for a short duration, but the airport should be flexible and allow AirAsia to sell our inbound packages for, say, two to five years to increase the passenger load. Otherwise, no one gains,” he said to reporters after presenting government grants for Minor Rural Project (MRP) at the Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) yesterday.

Dr Chan, who is also the President of SUPP, was asked to comment on whether Sarawak would emulate the Sabah government’s subsidy on airport charges for AirAsia to further promote the tourism industry.

He added that the high airport charges in Sarawak had hindered AirAsia from increasing the number of flights to Kuching, Miri, Bintulu and Sibu.

Though the airport charges are considered the lowest in Asian countries, passengers of AirAsia in Sarawak still consider them very high.

The airport taxes imposed in Malaysia is RM51 compared to Singapore (RM52), Jakarta, Indonesia (RM54), Hong Kong (RM65) and Bangkok, Thailand (RM76)

Dr Chan said apart from looking at solving the problem of high airport charges, the state government is seriously looking at other aspects in boosting the tourism industry and the overall development of Sarawak.

“We are seriously looking at establishing a low-cost carrier terminal (LCCT) adjacent to the present Kuching International Airport to boost the tourism industry,” he added.

The proposed project, scheduled for implementation this year, could accelerate the development of the tourism industry, where Kuching could be the hub for low-cost carriers in this region.

“Apart from the current destinations like Singapore, we are also looking at connecting Sarawak to other cities like Manila, Hong Kong and South Korea,” said Dr Chan.

He said South Korea would be given top priority, as its citizens are very keen in sport fishing and golf.

“We will continue to send our people to South Korea to promote golf and fishing competitions. Those who came to Miri last year were really excited about catching big fish here.

“We will also aggressively woo Singaporeans to our other unique attractions like Lambir, Niah and Mulu National Parks, and our pristine and unspoilt beaches, especially Singaporean students,” Dr Chan lamented.