KOTA KINABALU: An environmental group has urged the Sabah government not to throw caution to the wind over a proposed project by a Singaporean company to build a resort that will include a theme park in a protected area in the state.

       Sabah Environmental Protection Association (Sepa) president Alexander Yee pointed out that specific sites were earlier gazetted as protected reserves for, among others, its natural and heritage values.

       “There is a reason why an area has been gazetted as a protected area. And for whatever reasons, it’s not to build a theme park within the area,” he said, when contacted on Wednesday (June 15).

       “In the event that the government still wants to proceed, we will fully support it but do adhere by the strict guidelines already set down when the location was gazetted as a protected area and if applicable, according to the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA).”

       Yee was commenting on news reports over the keen interest expressed by property developer GSH Corporation to build the resort and theme park in a protected reserve in Sabah.

       Sabah Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Jafry Ariffin had on Tuesday (June 14) said the state government would need to look at the proposal carefully as it involved building the resort in an area under the Sabah Parks’ watch.

       The resort proposal was among the discussions brought up during a meeting between Jafry and GSH Corporation executive chairman Datuk Sam Goi when the Minister was in Singapore recently.

       According to its website, GSH Corporation was listed on the mainboard of the Singapore Exchange and has five properties under development in Malaysia and China.

       The company also owns the Sutera Harbour Resort here which consists of two five-star hotels, a marina and 27-hole championship golf course.

       It also operates the idyllic Sutera@Mantanani Resort on Pulau Mantanani located off the northern Kota Belud district.

       Another project, the Coral Bay@Sutera, which is a luxurious oceanfront residential project next to the Sutera Harbour Resort, is still under construction.

       Yee said it would be a wise move to visit the properties, including a lodge on Mount Kinabalu, established by the Singaporean firm to see how they are run and managed.

       “I also urge the Sabah government to disclose more details on the proposed resort cum theme park project, including the actual intended location for the undertaking,” he said.