JOHOR BARU (SIN CHEW DAILY/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) – A netizen, believed to be a tour guide, said on Facebook that tourists entering Malaysia by the Second Link waited seven hours for Customs clearance and they ended up having packed food for dinner.
The post last Thursday (March 21) included many photographs of the Sultan Abu Bakar Complex, where the Customs department is located, with pieces of tissue paper strewn on the ground around the toilet and trash bin.
The netizen said the photos were taken by tourists. He also remarked that tourist arrivals help to increase revenue for the country and he is upset that tourists are made to wait for long hours for Customs clearance.
The Sultan Abu Bakar Complex (KSAB) operations taskforce chairman Cheo Yee How and Johor Women Development and Tourism Committee chairman Liow Cai Tung expressed regret over the incident at a press conference last Friday (March 22).
Both urged travel operators to work with the Johor state government to avoid having tourists spending long hours waiting for clearance at the checkpoint in KSAB.
Malaysian Tourist Guides Council president Leong Wie Kong, who was also present at the press conference, said incidents of eating packed food by the road and doing fitness dances to pass the time while waiting for Custom clearance are isolated.
The tourists are believed to be bored after waiting two to three hours and were trying to attract the attention of the authorities.
