Open Letter to the newly-minted State Assembly of Pahang: Our Tropical Rainforests, Our Pride

 

Rafflesia 

By Stephen Ng

            First, allow me to congratulate Pahang Menteri Besar Wan Rosdy Wan Ismail and his new state exco, especially the newly-minted state exco in charge of unity, tourism and culture, Leong Yu Man.

              The state of Pahang has a lot to catch up on with the rest of the country in terms of development and infrastructure.

              To many of us who are living in the city, the moment we talk about Pahang, we think of the many beautiful eco-tourist destinations such as Tasik Cini, Taman Negara, the Cameron Highlands and Pulau Tioman.

Recently, when chatting with friends from Singapore about spending their holiday in Malaysia, I realised that many of them have never even experienced living in an eco-tourist resort.

To our Singaporean friends who are only familiar with the concrete jungle, they are seriously looking into spending a few nights in one of the eco-tourist resorts that I have featured before in Voiz.Asia.

              They were mesmerised by the fact that one can enjoy a stress-free and peaceful holiday even in the pristine tropical rainforest in Malaysia.

Pahang the Tropical Rainforest Hub

              Unless we preserve our national heritage, we will be losing one of the oldest tropical forests that is so very rich in biodiversity. The tropical rainforest in Pahang is reputed to be even older than the Amazon rainforests.

Pahang, being the biggest state in the Peninsular, has some 2 Mha of natural forest. Malaysians must realise that the natural rainforest becomes an important buffer for any drastic climatic change in the country. 

This explains why Pahang is so dear to many of us. For this reason, we travel to Cameron Highlands from all over the country just to spend our holidays; but sadly, many of the eco-tourist resorts in Pahang are losing their lustre.

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Tasik Cini and Taman Negara have suffered badly due to low tourist arrivals. A lot of efforts need to be done to rebuild the state’s eco-tourism sector and to capitalize on its rich heritage. Once destroyed, the tropical rainforest is irreplaceable.

Pahang is also the home state of our Seri Paduka yang DiPertuan Agong (SPDA), Al-Sultan Abdullah ibni Sultan Ahmad Shah, which my Singaporean friends heard so much about during the political impasse just before Anwar Ibrahim was appointed as the country’s tenth prime minister based on the Agong’s wisdom.

              Sadly, however, I have to admit that when I tried to help my friends in Singapore to get more information from one of the eco-resorts, Tanah Aina, which I have shared some information through an article I wrote a few years ago (https://voiz.asia/en/30322) I have to admit that I was truly shocked when one of the staff told me that the authority has sent a letter saying that they would not extend the business license to this resort.

When I enquired further about the ‘rumours,’ the owner was unwilling to divulge more information, except to say that she has no choice but to take on the litigation path against the state government, since she had written numerous letters of appeal.

Feeling sad that this has to happen, for the sake of the eco-tourism industry in Malaysia, I therefore appeal to all the parties involved in rebuilding the Malaysian economy to look seriously into this matter with some urgent attention.

Knowing the proprietor, Puan Sri Sabrina Syed Akil as a former president of Pelindung Khazanah Alam (PEKA) for over ten years now, makes it easy for me to vouch that the Puan Sri, for example, is a woman who loves the tropical rainforest. And, whenever I visit her Tanah Aina café, the Puan Sri of all persons would be serving her clients herself.

It would be ashamed if a resort like Tanah Aina whom she had invested so much money into, is being shut down, especially since it had won some 19 international accolades, which again, I am sure the resort had worked hard for.

Please do not kill the goose that lays the golden eggs, because there is really nothing like Pahang for eco-tourism. It is when these resorts thrive that the state of Pahang will be placed on the world map for being an eco-tourism destination.

It is, in fact, the national hub for eco-tourism that can attract both local and international tourists from Singapore, and as far as the Middle East and the West, if only some proper efforts are made to promote the eco-resorts. I see potential in this sector of the tourism industry.

With this, I hope the Menteri Besar, Wan Rosdy, state exco, Leong Yu Man and Minister of Tourism and Culture, Tiong King Sing would lend a helping hand to resolve the matter once and for all, and allow not only Tanah Aina, but other eco-tourist resorts in Pahang to help boost the country’s economy.

Would it be too much if I were to also ask the Prime Minister, Anwar Ibrahim to talk about our eco-tourism attractions to his counterparts around the world, so that he can bring in tourists from around the globe to spend time in our tropical rainforest, which had existed more than 130 million years ago during the Jurassic age, when dinosaurs once roamed on the earth!