SANDAKAN: Deputy Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Khairul Firdaus Akbar Khan hopes to see the status of his Batu Sapi parliamentary constituency changed from an industrial zone to tourism destination.
He said Batu Sapi was more suitable for the tourism and seafaring industries rather than industrial development.
“The factories operating in Batu Sapi not only affect the lives of nearby residents with pollution but also could cause harm to the ecosystem due to factory waste making its way into the sea.
“This is an appropriate time to gazette the many villages in Batu Sapi and I hope the Sandakan Municipal Council (SMC) would look into this,” he said when launching a tourism volunteer programme to revitalise the Heritage Park, a tourist attraction in Batu Sapi.
Khairul was pleased to see SMC making progress in efforts to develop tourism in Batu Sapi by coming out with a tourism blueprint which was handed over to him by SMC President Henry Idol at the event.
“We have formed a strategic cooperation between Tourism, Arts and Culture Ministry (Motac), Batu Sapi Parliamentary Office and SMC to ensure Batu Sapi’s Heritage Park will always become a tourist attraction,” he added.
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