‘ABOLISH TOUR GUIDE REQUIREMENT’
Domestic tourists familiar with places they want to visit, says tour bus group
THE Tour Bus Association of Peninsular Malaysia wants the authorities to do away with the requirement of mandatory tour guides for local tourists using their bus services.
Its secretary-general, Tai Poh Kim, said the Tourism, Arts and Culture Ministry should reconsider the rule and only impose the need for tour guides on trips with foreign tourists instead.
He was referring to the Tourism Industry Act 1992, stipulating that tour bus operators must get a tour guide if they are carrying more than seven passengers, regardless if they are locals or foreigners.
He said making it compulsory to have tour guides for local tourists would burden tour bus operators.
“Tour agents (sometimes) have to reject or cancel trips involving local tourists who want to use tour bus services due to the unavailability of tour guides.
“There are tour guides who prefer to only go on trips with foreigners, which pay more,” he told the New Straits Times.
Tai added that it was unnecessary to use tour guides for local tourists since they were familiar with the places they wanted to visit.
His comments were made following news that five tour buses that entered Melaka were issued with compounds totaling RM25,000 for failing to provide tourist guide services on Saturday.
The buses were stopped while carrying domestic tourists in an integrated operation carried out by the ministry and the Melaka Road Transport Department.
Melaka ministry officer Jay Yeow yesterday said an integrated operation carried out for three days targeted tour vehicles that did not comply with the Tourism Industry Act 1992.
“All travel agencies must have a tour guide, and if it’s a tour bus or tour van that doesn’t carry tourists, they can get an exemption,” he said.
“For example, sometimes there is no need for tourist guides as we also have schools that use tourist buses, not for tours, but for school programmes.”
However, Tai said there have also been cases where fines were issued when transfer trips were made using tour buses.
He urged the ministry to consider abolishing the requirement for a permit for the exemption of a tour guide when making transfer trips using tour buses.
“Transfer trips are trips to transport people for religious, wedding or sporting events. To do this, we have to apply for a permit and it will involve a lot of paperwork, which takes a toll on bus operators.”
Despite having the permits, Tai claimed tour bus operators were still being stopped and slapped with compounds.
He cited an incident which involved a group of passengers who were heading for Johor for a meeting. They had hired a tour bus for the transfer trip.
“On their way back, they decided to stop in Melaka for ‘ikan bakar (grilled fish)’ (for dinner). Although they have the exemption permit, a compound was issued because the rule stipulates that the (transfer) trip is for taking people from one point to the next point,” he said.
Tai described the incident as unfair as they had merely stopped to eat, adding that it would also deter locals from going on trips that could spur the country’s domestic tourism industry.
“How can we support the domestic tourism industry after what happened to the group? It is very unfair.”