KUALA LUMPUR - Corporate lawyer-cum-political maverick Wee Choo Keong will now chart the nation’s tourism development plans, assuming the Tourism Malaysia chairman post from Tan Sri Ng Yen Yen.
“It came as a surprise and I am really honoured,” the Kelantan-born, who turns 62 next week, told The Rakyat Post.
News of the announcement had been in the offing for some time now and when TRP contacted the lawyer earlier this week, he had pleaded ignorance.
“Some may think it’s an uphill battle to turn around the nation’s battered tourism image, but it’s a challenge I welcome.”
His immediate task, he added, would be to meet “his boss”, Tourism and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Aziz, to listen to what he has planned in charting the nation’s tourism future.
“Then, I would rally the respective tourism directors here and abroad, and see how best we can move ahead.
“We (the tourism industry) have taken a severe beating, but I shall not delve into it.”
Now, he added, was the time to move ahead and woo tourists, and also foreign investors.
In a quick response to the appointment, Wee was advised to avoid armchair discussions about what was being done and what is not to promote tourism.
“We hope Wee will engage the private players to fully understand the needs and requirements of the industry,” Kuala Lumpur Tourist Guides’ Association chairman Wong Hing Tuck said.
“It would be beneficial for Wee to seek out the private players as he has a legal background and will be able to comprehend how Malaysian tourism has something to offer all tourists in every category of budget.”
Wong regretted that previous administrators had seldom sought their opinion.
“Tourism Malaysia should surely pursue aggressive cooperation with the private players on the necessary changes to promote Malaysia as a must-visit location.”
For instance, the waived visa application fee of RM30 for tourists from China introduced last February was a futile initiative as the amount was near negligible for them.
“What they want is convenience and a hassle-free experience from visa requirement exemption, which should be implemented without further delay.
“The private players had been emphasising on the need for visa requirement exemption as the Chinese are becoming a bigger and bigger part of global outbound tourists, but it all fell on deaf ears,” Wong told The Rakyat Post.
He reminded that Malaysia stood to earn tremendously off its tourism wealth but the country simply allowed opportunities to slip away.
“We usually have 200 to 300 buses of Chinese tourists coming in through the Malaysia–Singapore Second Link during Chinese New Year.
“The last Chinese New Year, we only had about 20 to 30 buses. That’s how bad it is,” said Wong, who is also Malaysian Tourist Guides Council vice-president.
Wee started his political career as Opposition party member with DAP in 1990 and was elected MP for then Kuala Lumpur Bandar (later renamed Bukit Bintang).
He was removed from the seat following a court case and was ejected from the DAP in 1998 after being accused of damaging the party’s image. He then went on to form the Malaysian Democratic Party. Due to the 1995 court ruling against him, Wee only contested in the 2004 election and lost.
In the 2008 election, still with MDP, Wee was invited to join PKR and won the Wangsa Maju constituency. In 2010, he left PKR and did not recontest his seat in 2013.
Tourism Malaysia, also known as the Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board, as an agency functioning under the ministry, focuses on the specific task of promoting Malaysia at all levels.
In 2014, Malaysia registered 27.4 million tourist arrivals and RM72 billion in receipts, making tourism its second largest foreign exchange earner.
The country has set a target of 36 million tourist arrivals and RM168 billion in receipts by 2020. - Therakyatpost
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