The crowded departure hall in Tawau airport.
KOTA KINABALU (Sept 7): There is a need to upgrade the Tawau airport as its facilities are outdated, said Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) Youth Chief Jimmy Lai.
Jimmy said the condition of the Tawau airport does not augur well for the state’s tourism industry that is trying hard to recover from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Sabah’s east coast has so many tourism attractions to offer both domestic and international visitors but the condition of the Tawau airport is a disgrace, he opined.
“The condition of the restaurants, convenience stores, reception desks, check-in counters at the Tawau airport leaves an extremely bad impression on domestic and foreign tourists. While local tourism players are working to restore Sabah’s reputation as an internationally renowned tourist destination, the government has chosen to ignore one of its most important facilities,” he claimed.
Jimmy added that the arrival and departure halls are overcrowded and there are not enough seats in the departure hall.
To this end, the Ministry of Transport should do something to upgrade and improve the facilities at the airport, Jimmy said and he invited Transport minister Datuk Seri Dr Wee Kah Siong to personally visit the airport and see the condition there.
“If he comes personally, he will see for himself and understand what is the condition of the airport. That way, he will not have to rely on information submitted by his officials which may not give the full clear picture of the actual situation,” he said.
Upgrading the Tawau airport is also a step towards preparing for the relocation of the Indonesian capital from Jakarta to Kalimantan, he stressed.
He claimed that the relocation of the capital to Kalimantan, was welcomed by the private economic and trade sectors in Sabah and Sarawak, but the Malaysian government has not implemented any improvement plan related to Tawau airport.
“The federal government must give the people of Sabah an explanation. Whether it will upgrade the Tawau airport or whether it has other better solutions,” said Jimmy.