13Feb

North Borneo Railway steam train service back on track again

The North Borneo Railway steam train service is back on track after an absence of six years.

"This is the only one of its kind in South East Asia which I think Sabah should leverage on, said Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister, Datuk Masidi Manjun at the re-launching of the North Borneo Railway here, Saturday.

The North Borneo Railway is a joint venture project between Sutera Harbour and the Sabah State Railway Department, which was temporarily closed in September 2005 due to the upgrading works of the railway track.

The three-hour train service will operate on Wednesdays and Saturdays from Tanjung Aru to Papar.

Masidi said Sabahans should be proud that despite the developments and the modernisation of the transport industry, the State has somehow managed to save one of the last remnants of colonial transport.

"I believe that this is going to be a winner and be very popular among tourists just by looking at all the amenities and facilities that are served on board," he said, adding that it is very important that the standard of service is maintained continuously.

"I have always advocated that there are things in Sabah that we need to maintain for instance old shop houses in Tanjung Aru, which we need to strengthen the structure and convert into something that we can actually add value to what we already have.

"We have to keep in mind that development is not just about building tall buildings, its about the convenience of the people, you need to look beyond the building itself to appreciate what you are going to put into the city.

"If the city is congested with buildings, obviously traffic jams will follow next and at the end of the day, your intentions of wanting to enrich the city would actually backfire because people will stop patronising the city," said Masidi, adding that is why the same principle should apply to a product like this North Borneo Railway," he said.

On the recent opening of an 'upside down' house in Tuaran, he said, there is a need to think outside the box and come up with innovative ideas to continue to interest people in the tourism industry in Sabah.

On whether his Ministry will promote it as a tourism product, Masidi said as long as it complies with the safety standards there is nothing wrong with it.

"For me its not just about being upside down, its about creativity and that's what we need, it's not about doing the same thing over and over again but trying to do something new because the same thing all over again will only give the same result," he said.

In another matter he said: "I am very happy to announce that we may have exceeded our projected tourist arrivals of 2.63 million, however, we're still counting and we may have reached a figure of somewhere between 2.75million."

He also assured that his Ministry is working very hard to go for alternative routes following Malaysia Airlines' decision to cut a few routes.

"I went to Shanghai in December to meet up with China Eastern Airlines and immediately they have started their charter flight service to Kota Kinabalu.

"Hopefully by the end of this month, I will again go to Guangzhou to meet the China Southern Airlines and again its my sincere wish that they will come and start their service in Kota Kinabalu," he said.

Also present were Mayor Datuk Abidin Madingkir and Sutera Harbour Resort Chairman Tan Sri Ahmad Kamil Jaffar, among others.

Source: Daily Express

By Inside KePKASComments Off
Read more...
13Feb

Insight into human-crocodile conflicts by satellite tagging

A satellite tagging project has been started, to tag selected male crocodiles in 10 main rivers of Sabah, as part of an on-going project to gain insight into human-crocodile conflicts.

So far, two Kinabatangan river crocodiles have been tagged by the Sabah Wildlife Department, through its Wildlife Rescue Unit and Danau Girang Field Centre (DGFC), the latest being a 3.6 metre saltwater crocodile named Lais, on January 27.

DGFC director Dr Benoit Goossens said most human-crocodile conflicts involved large males of the species.

By tagging these animals, long term seasonal movements can be established, which would then help determine how lack of food may be forcing them to consider humans as a source of protein, he added.

“We plan to focus on 10 main rivers in Sabah and fit satellite tags on the male crocodiles in each of these rivers.

“We will also carry out surveys and collect samples to identify patterns of gene flow between the rivers and also to get an overall picture of fertility within the population,” said Goossens who is also leader of the Kinabatangan Crocodile Programme, in a press release issued yesterday.

The 10 rivers are Klias, Padas, Paitan, Sugud, Labuk, Kinabatangan,Segama, Kalumpang, Kalabakan and Serudon, with emphasis on two rivers with different degrees of human pressure — the Kinabatangan and Paitan.

Sabah Wildlife Department director Dr Laurentius Ambu attributed the recent successful tagging of the crocodile in the Kinabatangan river to both the Wildlife Rescue Unit and DGFC’s hard work. Ambu said the Wildlife Rescue Unit, funded by the Malaysian Palm Oil Council, Shangri-La’s Rasa Ria Resort and Le Meridien Hotel, has been extremely active since its creation.

DGFC Manager Mark Rampangajouw said a camera set up in the cage had allowed the project team to catch good shots of the crocodile as it took the bait and moved into the trap.

The satellite tagging project is currently funded by the Chester Zoo in Chestershire, UK and DGFC.

Source: Bernama

By Inside KePKASComments Off
Read more...
13Feb

Founder of Orangutan Appeal UK receives British MBE award

Sue Sheward, the founder and chairperson of the Orangutan Appeal UK, has been included in The Queen’s New Year’s Honours List and was awarded with an MBE for her work in protecting Asia’s endangered primates.

In an interview held during the Sepilok Orangutan Appeal UK cocktail party at Rasa Ria Resort here on Monday evening, Sheward said she was overwhelmed when she received a letter from the House of Commons informing her that she had been recommended for the Queen’s Honours List in 2012.

“I thought it can’t be true so I phoned the office to ask them if they sent me the letter. They confirmed, so it wasn’t a joke,” she quipped.

The award for the cause of the orangutan would help open doors across the world, she said, adding that it will definitely open more doors in the UK and Europe.

“I hope it will open more doors here and in Asia,” she said.

She also felt that there was a need to explain to the people on the important work the Sabah Wildlife Department (SWD) and the Appeal are doing.

“Let’s hope that it encourages more people and companies to show their green side,” she said.

Additionally, the award is testimony of her work with the apes of Asia, particularly the orang utan is recognised.

“The orangutan is such an endangered species, it is important worldwide.”

Prior to the knowledge that she has been nominated for the award, Sheward was contemplating retirement.

“But now I can’t. I have to continue to do it,” she said.

Sheward also commented on the European debt crisis and how it is affecting the people’s attitude towards charities since people do not have much money to give away.

“So the level of donation tends not to be so high.”

To generate more fund, Sheward said that they are focusing more on companies and are trying to encourage them to donate to the work of Appeal.

She explained that companies stand to benefit if they donate since they can claim for tax exemption against the donation.

Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Masidi Manjun, meanwhile, congratulated Sheward for the recognition accorded upon her for her work in Sabah.

“The fact that she is recognised and honoured shows that what we are doing in Sabah in the conservation of the orangutan is on the right track.

“We always have complaints about how our orangutans are disappearing and how we are not doing enough and that oil palm is killing the orangutans. There has been flying allegations of our conservation efforts but if the British government has honoured her, then we must be doing right. To us, this is an international stamp of approval from the world on what is being done here and for the Appeal,” he said.

Also present at the event was Datuk Mike Steel, the adviser for the Orangutan Appeal UK in Sabah.

Source: Borneo Post

By Inside KePKASComments Off
Read more...
13Feb

Be creative to boost tourism

Sabah should consider introducing sea or water taxi services in the state capital to solve traffic congestion, Tourism, Cultural and Environment Minister Datuk Masidi Manjun said yesterday.

"We can have lepa lepa (Bajau traditional boats) or motorboats and it will be an incentive for us to clean up all the rubbish in the water... we should look into this," Masidi said after relaunching the North Borneo Railway here yesterday.

He said Sabah needs to be more innovative and creative to achieve greater results in terms of its urban, tourism and transportation development.

"We can't be doing the same thing all over and expecting different results. It doesn't work that way because if you want different results, you need to be creative."

On urban development, he stressed that the city authorities should relook some of the developments that had taken place.

These included the growing number of multi-storey buildings within the city in the 12 years since Kota Kinabalu obtained city status.

Masidi pointed out that buildings should have an artistic value that reflected the inner beauty of the city people.

"Unfortunately, development is seen as making more money and constructing more buildings, and the taller the building, the better. That seems to be the epitome of this so-called physical development.

"However, in my opinion, we must build a development that enhances the life of the city and adds value to what we already have in the city.

"To this, the people of Sabah need to have a holistic view of the entire city development and not just some component of it or looking at it on an ad-hoc basis.

"So, eventually, the city authorities not only need to approve buildings but I think they need to build a city that represents the people," Masidi said.

"Building a city can be seen in two different ways, to put more buildings or to allow just sufficient buildings to make Kota Kinabalu as liveable a city as you can have."

Source: New Straits Times

By Inside KePKAS, Comments Off
Read more...
13Feb

“Ini Kali Lah” Sabah Nite On March 17

The Sabah Nite 2012 which aims to foster friendship, business networking and promote tourism and culture, as well as honour top achievers from Sabah in the Klang Valley, will be held in Shah Alam next month.

What started as an idea less than two weeks ago has now become a certainty, with preparations going at full steam to get the event going on March 17 at the Selangor Youth and Culture Complex in Section 7, Shah Alam.

The gala night -- with the popular Sabah catchphrase "Ini Kali Lah" (This Is It) as the tagline -- is the brainchild of two Sabah businesswomen based here, Marilyn Mona Pamajah and Kartini Ibrahim, who are spearheading the organising committee.

They told Bernama that the event, to be held in collaboration with the Sabah Liaison Office here, targeted 1,500 people.

"We can accommodate up to 1,800, depending on the response," said Kartini, the managing director of TechnoTrend Global, an event management and training provider.

"Through this event, we aim to provide a platform for Sabahans, particularly those in the Klang Valley, to get together and for corporate leaders in Sabah and their counterparts here to network with one another," she said.

Top achievers who have carved a name for themselves in the corporate world here, as well as students who excel in their studies will also be honoured at the event. "We are identitying the candidates," said Marilyn Mona, a partner at Berembang Akuakultur Sdn Bhd.

On the networking for businessmen, she said, the event would provide an excellent platform for businessmen in the peninsular and those from Sabah to establish contacts.

The event will also feature performances by artistes from Sabah such as the Akademi Fantasia alumni Noni, Ebi, Yaser, Ekin and Felix. The organising committee is currently negotiating with several more Sabah artistes to perform during the event which will also feature cultural performances as interludes.

Tickets are priced from RM100. More information can be obtained from Kartini at 018-9188030, Marilyn Mona at 016-2398484 and the Sabah Liaison Office at 03-92851372.

Source: Bernama

By Inside KePKASComments Off
Read more...