Local temple woos tourists
THE tourism industry in Lumut has received a strong boost from the Ping Sien Si Temple, Lumut MP Datuk Seri Kong Cho Ha said.
Kong, who is also Transport Minister, said the year-old tourist attraction in Pasir Panjang, which has large stone statues of Chinese deities and even a Monkey Garden, has been drawing huge crowds since its opening.
"It may be hard to imagine but the temple has been drawing in about 50 tourist buses daily and during the recent Hari Raya school holidays, it received a record number of 150 tour buses a day.
A gift: Kong (second from left) witnessing the souvenir presentation from Federation of Foo Chow Associations of Malaysia secretary-general Chiew Ming Keng (left) to Manjung Ping Tan Association's Wong Su Sing (third from right) during the association's eight anniversary dinner.
"This translates to about 6,000 tourists daily, which has contributed tremendously to the tourism sector in Manjung as well as Lumut," he said after opening the Manjung Ping Tan Association's eighth anniversary dinner last Saturday.
Kong said downstream activities such as the district's seafood industry had also benefited from the influx of tourists.
"After a day of sightseeing, the tourists pack seafood restaurants all around Lumut for lunch or dinner, and later on, move on to shops selling local produce such as ikan bilis, sotong and fish satay.
Cash token: Kong (right) presenting a reward for academic excellence by the Sitiawan Recreation Club to one of its member's children during its dinner. Looking on are club members.
"Needless to say, with the increase in business opportunities, there are more jobs for Lumut folks and the economy is growing rapidly," he said.
Kong added that the development was one of the continuous changes experienced by the local Foochow community since they settled down in Sitiawan almost 109 years ago.
"However, while we experience such prosperity, we also need to give back to society, much like the important role played by the association in taking care of its members' welfare," he said, before announcing a RM5,000 allocation to the association to fund its activities.
Kong later attended the Sitiawan Recreation Club annual general meeting dinner where he encouraged its members to reach out to newcomers.
"The club is one of the best platforms for newcomers to strike up a fellowship with the locals and also to get to know Sitiawan better," he said.
Kong also gave a RM5,000 allocation to the club.
-The Star-
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