PUTRAJAYA should explain why it is in a rush to implement the tourism tax, Parti Warisan Sabah said today.

“Sabahans must know the truth behind the implementation of the tax,” the party’s vice-president Junz Wong said in a statement. 

Tourism and Culture Minister Nazri Aziz should also come clean on a report that Tourism Malaysia incurred a deficit of RM250 million over the last two years, he said.

China Press had in a June 16 report quoting sources alleged that the Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board had pushed for the tax to start on July 1 in a bid to recover the deficit. 

Wong, who is Likas assemblyman, said tourism promotion in Sabah and Sarawak was done by their respective tourism boards and as such, there was little need for Tourism Malaysia.  

He said Sabah should be exempted from the tax as Malaysia stands to lose to countries like Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines if it is implemented.  

Nazri told The Malaysian Insight on June 27 that the tax had been deferred to Aug 1 following protests from the Sarawak and Sabah governments. 

Nazri also said the tax would only affect foreigners staying in all types of hotels while Malaysians staying in hotels rated three-star or below would be exempted.

The Padang Rengas MP said the tax would be divided into four categories – RM20 for five-star hotels, RM10 for four-star, RM5 for three-star, and RM2.50 for two-star and below. – June 29, 2017.