PENANG tourism operators are forced to cut down their operations to avoid further financial losses due to the drop in the number of visitors to the state as Covid-19 continues to spread.

Cost-cutting measures include laying off workers, and reducing salaries and the number of working days.

Business owners in Penang told The Malaysian Insight that the situation became worse when movement restrictions were re-introduced, coupled with the conditional movement control order (CMCO) in the Klang Valley, which impacted interstate travel.

In addition, the increasing number of Covid-19 cases under the third wave has also stopped people from travelling for holidays.

They said their businesses were regaining momentum when Putrajaya allowed interstate travel back in June during the recovery MCO. However, the emergence of new clusters in Penang in the past two months has ruined the situation.

Dr Gina Ooi – the founder of Penang Bird Park, which has been open since 1988 – has been affected.

“Last week, we had a new cluster in Penang prison. Many were infected and it caused panic.

“I did not expect that no one would show up at the bird park the next day, but I hope it will get better after two or three weeks,” she said when met in Seberang Prai.

She said an eco-tourism centre like the bird park was the most affected business due to lack of tourists, while it needs to operate on a daily basis to give food and care for the animals.

“Our operational costs were higher during the MCO. This was because the animal food suppliers cannot deliver because of roadblocks.”

She cited an example of a banana supplier from Baling who bought his produce from Thailand at RM2.20/kg.

“Due to the MCO, they could not travel, and we have to buy bananas from others at RM5-6/kg.”

She was grateful that in April, the Wildlife Department announced aid for animal centres.

It helped the operators to cover the costs of food and disinfection for six months, she said.

Ooi said she opened the park because she was interested in birds but when the pandemic spread, she did think of closing it down.

“I really hope the government will not impose a lockdown again. That way we can maintain this bird park. Even without making money, birds are a hobby, my life.”

“In a month, we need RM80,000 as operating costs, so we just lower the expenses in terms of animal food. Instead of expensive food, we look for cheap food.”

“We are trying to look for suppliers who can give cheap prices but with good quality,” she added.

Lowering entry fees

To attract local visitors, Association of Tourist Attractions Penang (Atap), agreed to lower the prices of tickets to all tourism sectors in the state by up to 50%.

Another attraction, the Ghost Museum in George Town, had to reduce staff by almost 70% to avoid closing down completely.

Museum development director Muhammad Hazlami Mohd Rosli said the business had to let 60 staff go to avoid going bankrupt.

“During the period from June to August, we made profit but since September, our income was just enough to cover operating costs.

“We are not experiencing huge losses, but we need to take drastic measures by reducing staff because there are not many tourists.

“We only operate to survive, not to make profit,” he told The Malaysian Insight.

Between June and August, the centre usually attracts tourists from Arab states but this year the profit plummeted by 90%, even after interstate travel was permitted to resume in June.

“For September 2020, our visitors were down by 70% compared to last year. Our profit is also only 10% from last year.

“We have no plans to stop the operation of this museum, we just reduce the operating costs.

“For example, there are no more tour guides to bring visitors into the museum but a map is provided, so that they can explore on their own.

“We are now in the process of growing our business in different ways,” he added.

According to Halzami, the museum usually receives many local visitors during the school holiday season but they are unable to set targets for November to December.

“We only hope that the business can continue to run even if it does not bring much profit. Even during school holidays, if the number of Covid-19 cases increases, we cannot do anything.

“It is difficult to set expectations, we will operate at a minimum rate and try to promote souvenirs as one of the measures to restore the company’s finances,” he said.

Reducing wages

Another member of Atap, Entopia Butterfly Park in Teluk Bahang, also faced problems when the country’s borders were closed because 50% of its visitors were foreign tourists.

“In the current situation, we cannot expect too much because we are aware that the tourism sector is the worst affected business due to Covid 19.

“We are also grateful that Malaysians visit this park as a sign of support for domestic tourism,” said Entopia sales and marketing department chief May Ang.

She said entry through the turnstiles decreased by 60%, especially when there were several new clusters in Kedah, Penang, and Selangor.

“We did not earn any income for three months since MCO and then, from June to September, we suffered a loss of RM3.25 million.

“Overall, the total loss was 58% during the period from January to September 2020, compared to last year in the same period,” she said.

She added that in order to continue the business, Entopia has received assistance from Perhilitan to feed its animals.

“Our landlord has extended the rent reduction for six months. We are also taking part in the wage subsidy programme run by the Social Security Organisation (Socso).

“These aids help us to survive under the pandemic,” she explained.

However, Entopia had to cut employees’ salaries, including offering unpaid leave.

“We are implementing pay cuts to all staff and offering unpaid leave, so as to retain the workforce and not lay off them.

She added that they initially operated four days a week but now extended to six days a week to encourage domestic tourism.

Entopia has reduced ticket prices by 50% until the end of the year with the help of the state government and Atap.

Since last September, several clusters have appeared in Penang, including the Remand Prison Cluster, Ara Cluster, Seberang Prai Prison Cluster, and most recently the Alma Cluster.

As of October 20, 367 active cases were recorded in the state, while in total Penang has recorded 670 cases and three deaths. – October 25, 2020.