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KUCHING: There is still no decision on the proposed cable car initiative that would take visitors to the top of Mount Santubong, said Sarawak Economic Development Corporation (SEDC) president Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Husain.
While there is resistance from environmentalists to the proposed initiative, SEDC is still analyzing the proposal, he said.
“This is not our proposal (of the SEDC). It was proposed by someone else but we have been asked to look into it because the project has been there for the last 10 years and we will see what is the best way to attract people to this Damai peninsula. We want to know (if it is) the cable car or something else, ”he told reporters during the walk through the Sarawak Cultural Village (SCV) in Santubong here today.
In the master plan, SEDC will look at the issue in hopes of reaching a decision on the proposed project, he said, noting that there are environmentalists who said having cable cars going to the top of the mountain is not good for the environment.
“To some extent, I agree with that; but we have to find some alternative ways to make this place (Damai Peninsula) more attractive and easily accessible to people. Is the cable car one of them? I won’t be very sure until we finish or finalize our study, ”he said.
Abdul Aziz said that the master plan will take into account not only the environmental issue, but also the heritage, the social impact and the benefits for the people.
“We need a very complete study because we don’t want to do something and we find that it is not right; It would be very difficult to back down once we have made a development that could spoil the environment, “he said.
On how Covid-19 has affected the SEDC’s tourism-related business, Abdul Aziz said that the occupancy rate of its hotels and resorts has dropped to less than 10 percent, but added that the resort has benefited some from local tourists, especially on the weekends.
“We hope to capitalize on local tourism after the CMCO (Conditional Movement Control Order) is lifted,” he said, adding that prior to the implementation of this control order, the corporation was able to make good income from its hotel businesses, especially from the food and beverage operations as well as the resort side. -Called
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