KUALA LUMPUR, July 1 — Tourism Malaysia chairman and Redberry Group managing director Datuk Siew Ka Wei assured Malaysians they have nothing to worry about on the Tourism Tax as it is done for the benefit of the Rakyat.

Siew was on BFM 89.9’s The Breakfast Grille show to address the public’s concern while sharing his focus and determination to better promote Malaysia as the ideal holiday destination.

Khoo Hsu Chuang (BFM): You’ve been Tourism Malaysia chairman for two years. On what basis were you hired? Datuk Siew Ka Wei (SKW): I was only appointed in September last year. (Tourism and Culture Minister Datuk Seri) Nazri (Aziz) thought it was time Tourism Malaysia has an entrepreneur as chairman. The last nine months have been ‘illuminating’. I learnt a lot about how the government works, the civil service.

BFM: Your appointment has similarities with US President Donald Trump as previous presidents were all civil servants or from a political background. Trump is a successful businessman. He has brought the knife to the US government, busy doing his thing. Did you find it painful to do your thing? SKW: The decision-making process was tough for the minister and the board. We do not want to affect the lives of our people. Having said this, with the cutback in the allocation from the government for promotion purposes it was important to rationalise (closing some overseas offices). 

BFM: A few weeks ago, the Tourism and Culture Minister announced the Tourism Tax. The private sector claimed they were not consulted. You said you’ve brought on board those from the private sector including from the hotel industry, but they too said quite the opposite. SKW: There were discussions at the board and of course there were various inputs given. Consultations were done with Malaysian Association of Hotels, travel agencies, airlines, and anybody who’s impacted had their say. As consultants, we garner feedback and channelled it to the government for a decision.

BFM: July 1 (today), was supposed to be when the Tourism Tax comes into effect. But Nazri has said it should be postponed to Aug 1. What is behind the postponement? SKW: We have been taking criticisms. But I am sure all of you have heard Malaysians will not be subjected to the Tourism Tax when staying at hotels that are rated three stars and below. This is a huge impact. This change was brought about because of the feedback.

BFM: So why wasn’t it done properly? SKW: There were discussions at board level and all that has been mentioned was brought up. The Bill was passed. The minister called for a meeting and all was discussed including the feedback that came in. That has helped formulate the final Bill.

BFM: One of the things you are pushing for is not just to extend the stay of arrivals in the country of three days and two nights on average, but also to increase the expenditure by each tourist arrival. So what are the policy measures to increase these two vital aspects? SKW: The average stay of arrivals in the country is actually six days. All the efforts have been placing a great deal of emphasis on greater shopping value. When we talk about tourism, it’s not just about how we promote, but it’s important for Malaysians to buy in as well. When tourists come to Malaysia and if they have a bad experience, it has a big impact not just on the visitors, but also for their family and friends. 

BFM: How does the government increase the spending of tourists from a policy perspective, how is this done?  SKW: It’s not just shopping that attracts tourists to our country. It’s also the food. There has been a great emphasis on Malaysian cuisine which is a big attraction. We’re also trying to push for more unusual sites to visit, as there are a lot of beautiful places in Malaysia that are not yet being promoted properly. 

BFM: There’s also the social impact to consider. The more tourists arrive in the country, the higher the prices go.  SKW: First of all, the rise in prices is determined by the seller. It is the locals who are trying to make more money, it’s not the cost of goods. One cannot charge RM13 to RM14 for a plate of char koay teow just because a lot of foreigners buy it.

BFM: You’ve actually projected three million tourist arrivals from China. This should help to achieve the 30 million target. At the halfway point in the year, where are we right now in terms of numbers of arrivals? SKW: The numbers are up. From the period between January to April this year, a total of 735,618 tourists arrived from China, and this represents an increase of 7.7 per cent as compared to last year.

BFM: You talk about Malaysia having unique characteristics, and it doesn’t come more unique than Sarawak and Sabah. One of the unwanted by-products of the Tourism Tax was fury surrounding it from Sarawak. Have you alienated people unwillingly, specifically Sarawak because of the introduction of this tax? SKW: I’ll leave politics aside. I’ll just talk about the impact.

BFM: Well why leave politics aside? SKW: I am not a politician. Because civil servants are not politicians, please bear in mind.  What I will talk about is this, because everybody jumped the gun. If you are patient and wait a bit longer, you can see how the money is being spent. The biggest beneficiaries are Sabah and Sarawak. When we first talked about the introduction of the Tourism Tax, they did not object to it.

BFM: You run the Redberry Media Group, of which billboards, hoardings and outdoor advertising are part of the company’s business. Did you benefit in any way? SKW: Not a single sen. We did get a small amount for running the Asia Pacific Rally competition, which is all we got over the last three to four years.

BFM: Being Chinese Datuk, because of the amount of business done with China, was it the reason for your appointment? SKW: I am a Malaysian. It has nothing to do with race. The board’s first chairman was a businessman as well, Philip Kuok.  Basically, it’s just the approach. I’ve already told the board we have to use data to help us with the numbers. Did you know during our discussion with AirBnB, the hottest trending spot was Kampung Baru? These are the interesting, unique sites that were not addressed before which needs to be promoted and highlighted.