SANDAKAN – Sabah will proceed with its Sabah My Second Home (SM2H) programme with or without approval from the federal Tourism, Arts and Culture Ministry (Motac), said Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor.
He will still inform the federal ministry of Sabah’s decision, he said in a statement today.
“Sabah will proceed with the programme. The state cabinet has approved the programme for implementation so we will proceed.”
Hajiji’s statement follows confusion over Motac’s recent move to stop Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H) agents from operating – a matter which appears to not have been announced in public.
Sabah was due to hold the launch of its own version of MM2H on June 1, and Motac’s announcement to halt agents’ operations was criticised by state Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Christina Liew.
She also revealed to the media that Motac’s decision was in a circular dated May 27.
Liew and Sarawak’s Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts Minister Datuk Seri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah said their respective states would proceed with their own version of the MM2H programme.
Karim said both Bornean states had autonomy over their immigration and tourism matters, and the federal ministry should have consulted the states before making its announcement.
However, Motac minister Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing has said that Sabah and Sarawak will have autonomy in how they run their own MM2H programmes.
He also took Liew to task for failing to attend ministry meetings on MM2H, where she would have been updated on policy developments.
In April, Tiong was reported saying that Motac was vetting and regulating all MM2H agents, as the ministry was now the main promoter and marketer of the programme.
He also said programme applicants were being charged hefty fees by agents, and he encouraged them to use Motac’s one-stop centre for MM2H matters. – June 13, 2024