It will be another year of survival for the Malaysian hotel industry.
The occupancy rate remains at an all-time low for a second consecutive year due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Malaysian Association of Hotels (MAH) chief executive officer Yap Lip Seng said while occupancy has increased to 30 per cent after the government’s decision to allow inter-state travel between Recovery Movement Control Order states since March 10, the industry is still reeling from the pandemic.
“Historically, we need an occupancy rate of 40 per cent to break even. But this was when the room rates were normal. The rates now are lower,” said Yap.
“The occupancy rate was about 20 per cent before the government’s announcement on inter-state travel among RMCO states. Since then, it has gone up another 10 per cent.
“Our income is also derived from hosting meetings and small events.”
Yap said the industry is looking forward to interstate travel during the Hari Raya period. He said this will provide a boost for the industry.
“If interstate travel is still not allowed, we forsee the occupancy rate hovering between 20 and 30 per cent.”
He added some hotels are still being used to house people under surveillance although the numbers remain small.
“Sarawak is recording a higher occupancy rate between 50 and 60 per cent but these are mainly for those under quarantine.”
It is mandatory for anyone entering Sarawak to be quarantined.
“Hotels are really hoping for the travel ban to be lifted soon. However, we don’t expect to make any profit this year. It will be another year of survival for the industry.”
Established in 1974, MAH has over 1,000 members under 13 chapters and partnerships with both the private sectors and government agencies.
As the official national network for the hotel industry of Malaysia, MAH acts as the voice of the industry, working as one body to promote, protect, represent and advance the interests of its members.
Here’s the round-up of The News Normal today.
DAP CALLS FOR RCI ON ‘POLICE CARTEL’
The DAP today called for a Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) into the alleged cartel of dirty and corrupt policemen after the matter was brought up by Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Abdul Hamid Bador recently.
Party secretary-general Lim Guan Eng said the RCI was necessary to get to the root of the problem and clean up the force as the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) has said it does not intend to investigate an internal problem.
Lim also claimed MACC had abdicated its responsibility and statutory duty under Section 7 of the MACC Act that requires the commission to “detect and investigate” suspected offences and “to examine the practices, systems and procedures of public bodies”.
“By refusing to investigate, public confidence in MACC’s credibility and professionalism have been severely affected when Abdul Hamid disclosed that even a former IGP was on the payroll of crime syndicates,” Lim said in a statement.
KJ: HOLD POLLS TO RESOLVE UMNO CRISIS
Rembau MP Khairy Jamaluddin says the only way for Umno to resolve its internal turmoil is by holding party polls.
Raising the matter through a posting on his Instagram page, the Science, Technology and Innovation Minister urged the party’s Supreme Council “to do the right thing” as Umno “cannot continue like this.”
He said the party must face GE15 with a leadership that has a clear mandate and can win the support of the people.
COLDPLAY HELPS ‘FIX’ MALAYSIAN RIVERS
Coldplay has sponsored a watercraft that removes plastic trash from Malaysian rivers.
The Interceptor 005 is a watercraft built by Dutch non-profit organisation The Ocean Cleanup.
The interceptor is built locally in partnership with Finnish firm Konecranes at their facility in Bukit Raja, Klang. It is expected to catch up to 100 tonnes of trash, including plastic, daily.
Malaysia first received the Interceptor in August 2019 and it was placed in the Klang River. The second machine, which is sponsored by the British band, will be deployed to Malaysia soon.
YOUTH COACH: KIDS SHOULD NOT BE RUSHED TO PLAY MATCHES
Children should not be rushed into playing friendly matches or tournaments as they have been out of action for 12 months.
Following the relaxation of the Movement Control Order (MCO) in Malaysia this month and the government allowing contact sports including friendlies, Youth Football Academy (YFA) Red Star technical director N. Rada Krishnan said the focus should be on building the stamina of the children.
