In the Dewan Negara, Deputy Tourism Minister Sulaiman Abdul Rahman Abdul Taib told the senators that Arab tourists in Malaysia spend the most compared to visitors from other countries.

The Arabs spend on average RM6,070 during their time in the country.

arab tourist shopping in kl shopping mall 200705 This is 36.2 percent higher than the amount of money spent by other tourists, which on average came up to only RM2,196 in 2007, said Sulaiman.

He also said that in 2006, Arab tourists spent on average RM5,362. In 2005, they spent an average of RM 4,045.

"Arab families, when they visit, come in big numbers. They do not stay in hotels for two or three days. Sometimes, they stay for a whole month," said Sulaiman.

Conflicting versions

Meanwhile conflicting versions were heard today over a 2002 episode pertaining to the alleged non-payment of wages by the Kelantan state government for its State Tourism Action Council (MTPN) officers and staff.

Sulaiman said that following the Kelantan government's disagreement over the ministry's choice of a local Umno division leader to be the state MTPN chairperson in 2002, it had withheld for three months payment of salaries of the state MTPN employees.

"The Kelantan government did not follow right procedures and was politically motivated (in this matter)," said Sulaiman when winding up the debates on the Supplementary Supply Bill in Dewan Rakyat.

The matter caused a five-minute ruckus which saw Salahuddin Ayub (PAS-Kubang Kerian) accusing Tourism Minister Azalina Othman of lying and harbouring malicious intent against the Kelantan government.

Abdul Halim Abdul Rahman (PAS-Pengkalan Chepa), however, later stood up and asserted that the issue of salaries and other financial matters of MTPN-Kelantan were under the jurisdiction of the tourism ministry, not the state government.

Abdul Halim, who was Deputy Kelantan Menteri Besar in 2002, also said the state government's rejection of the ministry's choice for MTPN-Kelantan chairperson was because in all other states, the position was given to the state exco member in charge of the tourism portfolio.

This did not happen in the case of Kelantan, said Abdul Halim, for which the state government had asked whether there were no other choices of persons who could be MTPN-Kelantan chairperson.