PHOTO; Heads of department showing boxes of surgical mask afterreceiving them from Liew (5th left). Third from left is Dr Jamili.
By Mary Chin
KOTA KINABALU: A total of 231 Kinabalu mountain guides affected by the Movement Control Order (MCO) has been paid RM300 each for their subsistence for now.
Disclosing this, Minister of Tourism, Culture and Environment, Datuk Christina Liew said the amount was banked into their respective bank accounts.
“Payment was done by the Sabah State Treasury. The payment for another 82 Kinabalu mountain guides and porters is being processed now, and they should receive the money within one or two days.
“For the remaining 102 Kinabalu mountain guides who do not have a bank account, the Sabah Parks Board will make the disbursement on a later date as part of their corporate social responsibility (CSR) programme,” she said in a statement issued here, Thursday, after chairing a meeting with the Ministry’s Permanent Secretary Dr Jamili Nais and heads of department of six agencies under her Ministry.
Liew, who is also Deputy Chief Minister, said a total of 1,038 freelance tourist guides has also been paid directly through their respective bank accounts on Thursday. The payment was done through the Sabah Tourism Board (STB).
“For this purpose, my Ministry has received a sub-allocation of RM311,400 from the State Ministry of Rural Development. The sum will be channelled later to STB as reimbursement for the payment made to the freelance tourist guides concerned,” she said.
The Minister also said that the appeal for help by 293 artists, musicians, singers and deejays was now being considered by the State Government for the second phase of assistance.
Present at the meeting were STB General Manager Noredah Othman, Sabah Cultural Board General Manager Mansur Asun, Director of Sabah Parks, Maklarin Lakim, Director of Sabah Wildlife Department, Augustine Tuuga, Director of Environmental Protection Department, Vitalis Moduying and Deputy Director of Sabah Museum Department, Su Chin Sidih who represented the Director. –END-