Form club to help each other, Yen Yen tells local tour guides

RAUB: Local tour guides are encouraged to form a committee or club to streamline their services, said Tourism Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ng Yen Yen.

She said local guides should not be selfish and must stand as a unified force. “If everyone wants to work alone, then nobody can become successful. Local tour guides must help each other understand the products and what tourists want,” said Dr Ng after launching a water sports tourism centre in Kampung Batu Malim here yesterday. She said the committee could work out a standard fee structure to create a healthier working environment among local tour guides.

Buoyed up: A group of rafters cruising down the river at Kampung Batu Malim after the water sports tourism centre was launched by Dr Ng.

“Such a committee can also cooperate with Village Development and Security Committees (JKKK) to come up with tour packages such as cycling and rafting. “I want them to be creative. Perhaps they can create a night rafting experience where the rafts and river are all adorned with lights,” suggested Dr Ng. At the event, she also presented certificates to 25 local youths, who completed the basic tour guide course.

On another matter, Dr Ng stressed that safety and cleanliness should never be compromised in promoting tourism. “I urge the JKKK to set up a special committee to ensure the environment is well taken care of. Food stall operators should dispose their garbage properly,” she said. Dr Ng was responding to Raub district officer Datuk Ismail Mohd Ali’s speech earlier where he raised the possibility of leptospirosis spreading due to unhygienic conditions.

-thestar online.