“We will be having a state Cabinet meeting tomorrow to discuss the issue. Until then, I cannot comment further,” Hajiji told reporters after an event.

Sabah is highly dependent on Chinese tourists, who made up almost half the visitor arrivals between 2017 and 2019.

The state is expecting an influx of tourists from China where Covid-19 cases have surged in recent weeks.

On Dec 30, Sabah’s spokesman for Covid-19, Masidi Manjun said travellers from China would need to show that they had tested negative for Covid-19 within 48 hours before travelling to the state.

However, the statement was retracted several hours later, as the directive had yet to be endorsed by the Sabah Cabinet.

Meanwhile, Hajiji said the Cabinet would also discuss a proposal for English to be recognised as an official language in Sabah alongside Bahasa Malaysia.

Yesterday, SAPP president Yong Teck Lee said Sabah should emulate Sarawak in adopting the use of English as one of the two official languages in Sabah.

Hajiji also said the state Cabinet would discuss a proposal to mine and dredge marine sand some 55km from Kota Kinabalu.

Under the proposal involving Handal Energy Bhd and Tanjung Aru Eco Development (TAED) Sdn Bhd, the sand is to be used to reclaim a large part of the Tanjung Aru seafront.

Earlier, Hajiji handed over cash aid to 36 heads of households in Kampung Tanjung Aru Baru whose houses were damaged or destroyed by the recent king tide phenomenon.

Three families whose houses were destroyed received RM21,000 each to rebuild their homes.

The 33 households whose homes were damaged received RM11,000 each to help with repair work.

Hajiji said the state government would also be helping some 200 victims of the king tide in Kampung Forest in Sandakan.

He said the victims did not want to rebuild their homes there and the state government was now looking for a suitable area to relocate them.