LOCAL hotel association and its members are enraged that the Government is trying to rid itself of blame for the closure of hotels during lockdown periods.
This is relating to a statement by Senior Minister for Security Ismail Sabri Yaakob that claimed the Government had never ordered hotels to shut their doors and stop operating in the first round of the movement control order (MCO 1.0), all throughout the conditional MCO (CMCO) and recovery MCO (RMCO).
He also tried to rid the Government of any fault by saying that any hotel closures were unrelated to the Government or its orders.
“The Government needs to realise the real reason why some hoteliers had to shut down during the MCO, and those who managed to keep their lights opened are still struggling to hold on. It was because the Government decided to close the country’s borders since March 2020 and restricted locals from interstate travel for tourism purposes,” explained MyBHA vice president Ganesh Michiel.
In fact, Ganesh also said that the recent relaxation of restrictions have not done anything for the hotel industry since people would not need to check into hotels if they are so close to home.
“We get that the Government has a lot on its plate right now, but at the same time, the Government should try to understand what the hotel industry have had to face,” Ganesh said.
“We hope that the Senior Minister for Security would take immediate precautionary action and not just try to wash their hands from helping the hotel industry that have been gravely affected by the pandemic,” he added.
Ganesh also hoped that the Government would introduce a targeted stimulus package to the hotel and tourism industry, as it will take some time before it recovers from the aftermath of COVID-19. – Feb 24, 2021
