KUCHING, Oct 30 ― Federal Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Mohamaddin Ketapi said today he does not know of any plan by the ministry to exhibit Egyptian pharaoh's tomb and artefacts of Ramses II and Tutankhamun, or popularly known as King Tut, in October next year in conjunction with Visit Malaysia Year (VM2020).

“This matter has never been discussed by the Cabinet for its approval or discussed at the ministry level,” he told reporters after soft launching VM2020 here.

“You’ve got to ask the deputy minister about the plan,” he said, referring to Muhammad Bakhtiar Wan Chik who made the announcement.

Mohamaddin said he should be consulted first if the announcement was meant for publicity’s purpose, in accordance with the regulations approved by the ministry.

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“The person who has been approved by the Cabinet to speak on behalf of the ministry is the minister, not the deputy minister or officials.

“They can only speak after getting the approval and authorisation from the minister,” he said, adding that Muhammad Bakhtiar did not get his permission to speak on behalf the ministry.

Mohammaddin said he also heard that funds would be collected to bring the tomb and artefacts Egypt to Malaysia.

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“I don’t know how funds is to be raised, either it is from the public or other sources,” he said.

Asked if he agrees for the exhibition to be held in Malaysia, he replied:” How can I agree if the matter was never brought to my attention?

“How can I reject if it don’t know about it? What is there for me to reject?” he asked.

He said bringing the tomb and artifacts to Malaysia will require hundreds of millions of ringgit worth of insurance coverage.

He also said any move to bring the tomb and artefacts to Malaysia must be discussed by the top level of both Malaysian and Egyptian governments, not at the ministerial level.

Muhamaddin expressed doubts if the plan to bring the tomb and artefacts will materialise.

Yesterday, Mohammad Bakhtiar had said that the government was still working to finalise the exhibition with Egyptian government and would organise a fundraising event to make it happen.

“Every exhibition tour involving Ramses II and King Tut have always received a high number of visitors so in line with Visit Malaysia Year 2020, we are not just attracting the local visitors but also tourists from Asean member countries.

“It's one way to make our national museum to be a cultural development centre for all,” he was quoted by Bernama after attending the 7th Asian National Museums Association (ANMA) Executive Meeting and Conference here.