LANGKAWI: The outgoing chief executive officer of Langkawi Development Authority (LADA), Datuk Azizan Noordin, has paid a glowing tribute to media practitioners for placing the island prominently on the world tourism map.
He said throughout his two years in office, media practitioners here had produced inspiring works to promote the tourism industry in Langkawi.
“The media is one of the most important forces. Without the media, the tourism world will be silent,” he said when speaking at an appreciation dinner he hosted for the media last night.
He said his relationship with the media was forged over 40 years ago when he began his career with the Malaysian Tourism Promotion Board (Tourism Malaysia), which was then known as the Tourism Development Corporation (TDC).
“Back then in 1978, I used to bring journalists, travel writers and filmmakers to Langkawi and their works since then have helped to promote Langkawi,” he said, adding that a crewmember who worked on a famous Australian travel series, 'A Town Called Alice' was among the first people that he brought in to the island back then.
Speaking of recent times, Azizan said media practitioners had continued this effort and collaborated closely in the various programmes organised by LADA.
He said the changing media landscape and the introduction of social media had also opened up further avenues in promoting Langkawi.
“The good efforts which have been done to promote Langkawi all this while should never stop and I hope our friends from the media would continue to render their cooperation to whoever succeeds me later,” he added.
Azizan, 62, assumed his post as LADA chief executive officer on Dec 1, 2016, taking over from Tan Sri Khalid Ramli and will end his tenure on Nov 30. — BERNAMA
