KUALA LUMPUR, April 8 — Malaysian Association of Hotels (MAH) clarified today that its hotel members were properly briefed and are well aware of the agreed-upon RM150-per-day payment for rooms and meals.
In a statement today, MAH Chief Executive Officer Yap Lip Seng said it has been in discussion with the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture (MOTAC) from “day one” and had been kept well informed on the government’s intentions.
“MAH would like to clarify that the association and its members are well aware of the room rate for the stays complete with three meals daily as per the government’s approved budget and agreed upon by its member hotels participating in the initiative.
“MAH was in discussion with MOTAC from day one and had been kept well informed on the government’s intentions.
“Hotels participating as quarantine centres agreed to the rate partially as CSR serving the government’s needs,’’ he said in a statement.
Yap further explained that designated hotels turned quarantine centres are properly supervised by the Ministry of Health (MOH) and the National Disaster Management Agency (NADMA).
“Returning Malaysians placed under quarantine are not patients. Under the mandatory quarantine, they are to remain in the hotel room for the entire 14 days, with no one going in or out of the rooms.
“Being gazetted as quarantine centres also means that the property will be under close surveillance before, during and immediately after the quarantine period. Hotels are suitable alternatives due to its support systems and standard operating procedures in place, in addition to providing a more comfortable and equipped quarantine stay for Malaysians returning home,’’ he said.
Yap’s statement comes after a report by Free Malaysia Today (FMT) yesterday which quoted that hoteliers were under the impression that rooms used would be fully paid for by the government, and not merely subsidised at RM150 per room.
In his statement today, Yap clarified that the report was inaccurate.
