KUALA TERENGGANU: Measures to control the spread of Covid-19 virus in Terengganu turned out to be more complicated because the long school holidays have attracted more visitors who are now enjoying their stay on houseboats at Tasik Kenyir as well as island resorts.
In less than six hours, the authorities will have to think of the best way to tackle the crowd when the restricted movement order comes into force at midnight tonight.
State chairman for Tourism, Culture and Information Technology Ariffin Deraman said with resorts and hotels on the islands nearly fully booked, it would be a headache for the operators to close down their businesses for 14 days during the period.
“They also have to deal with booking cancellations within that period and the refunds. However, they are hoping those who have cancelled to instead move their bookings forward after the all-clear signal is issued by the relevant authorities,” he said during a briefing on the Covid-19 at Wisma Darul Iman today.
“We have discussed the effect of Covid-19 on the tourism industry in Terengganu two months ago and thought that the spread of the virus will end by March or April. But it has become a serious national issue.
“We have to be prepared to prevent it from spreading further and follow directives issued by Federal authorities, especially the Prime Minister’s Office and the Health Ministry,” he said.
Ariffin added that screening of visitors to the islands would be conducted by the Marine Department and urged visitors to cooperate.
He said the Central Terengganu Development Authority (Ketengah) has taken a proactive measure by closing all the tourism spots under its control in Tasik Kenyir, such as the Kelah Sanctuary and Herb Island, but it could not stop visitors from hiring houseboats to tour the lake.
“As a preventive measure, closure of activities at the lake and islands is necessary but many visitors wanted to complete their holidays in Terengganu.”
Ariffin said Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar would be announcing the details of the preventive measures either later today or early tomorrow following a meeting with Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.
“We hope the 14-day restrictive movement order is sufficient to mitigate the spread of the Covid-19 virus."