Masidi was commenting on local guides from two associations who were reported to have protested against allegedly unlicensed foreign guides at the Kota Kinabalu International Airport here on Sunday.
The big crowd of protesters caused the guide to flee. This left dozens of Chinese tourists, who had just arrived stranded for almost two hours.
The protesters followed the tourists as they boarded their excursion bus and continued to warn them of the consequences of not hiring local guides.
The Sabah office of the federal tourism and culture ministry however condemned the protests and said the tour company that organised the Chinese citizens’ trips had conducted its business legally.
“What I’m saying is that the way they carried out the protest at the airport is wrong, to be honest with you,” said Masidi during the Sabah Education Department’s Hari Raya gathering.
“That’s not the way Sabahans solve problems. Indirectly, it may have damaged the industry.
“Look at the years we’ve gone through. The kidnappings and even the disappearance of flight MH370, that had nothing to with Sabah, could affect us in Sabah.
“That’s why I said tourism is a very sensitive industry.”
He said highlighting the local guides’ grouses to the public and making tourists feel that Sabahans are unfriendly is the wrong way to air their grievances.
Masidi felt the local guides’ indiscretion had made it harder to compete with neighbouring nations.
“We are trying to compete with the likes of the Philippines, Vietnam, Thailand and Indonesia.
“Yet, here we are damaging the very industry that benefits us,” he said.
“I think they’re shortsighted. We need to look beyond just one incident to see the full repercussions of our actions.
“I leave it to the licensing agencies who issue licences to tour guides.
“They have the wisdom. It’s up to them to investigate and if they feel that there’s a need to take action, then I leave it to them.
“Over time, we need to perfect the (licensing) system. The system may not be perfect.
“The government, agencies and players will have to sit down and work out a good solution to the issue,” said Masidi.