KUALA LUMPUR: If you have RM 18 million just lying around, why not consider investing and buy a little piece of island on sale in the Semporna archipelago of Sabah?
The island, Pom Pom, is situated in waters close to Sipadan Island. The area for sale, which is completely uninhabited, covers 7.3 acres (about 3ha).
The sale of the plot on the island is listed on a Facebook page, belonging to a Sabah real estate negotiator, Johnny Wong.
When reached for comment, Johnny said that so far, there has been one serious buyer who is offering to purchase the land a little below the asking price.
The land owner, however, he said, will settle for a reserve price ranging between the selling and bidding prices.
The entire island currently has 19 owners who own different areas of land. But only the one plot listed on Facebook is for sale currently.
Pom Pom Island is located approximately 30km northeast of Semporna in the Celebes Sea and known for its fringing coral reef that forms around the island.
A simple online search would show you all that. Seemingly untouched, surrounded by pristine blue waters and endless white sand beaches. But, there is a little catch.
If you were to scroll down a few search hits, you would learn that this was where the Abu Sayyaf kidnappings took place in 2013. Then, the island was developed with hotels and resorts, vibrant with visiting tourists.
Unfortunately, for a Taiwanese tourist on that fateful Nov 15, 2013, he was shot dead when armed militants took over the island. His wife was then kidnapped and taken to the southern Philippines. She was later freed in the Sulu Province by Philippine security forces.
That incident wasn't the last. Three years on, some fishing boat crew members were kidnapped by gunmen in waters near the island, off Semporna.
Eastern Sabah's coastal authority, Eastern Sabah Security Command (Esscom) confirmed the kidnappings after receiving a report from a fishing vessel owner on the missing men the day it happened.
Given its dark past, who knows, you could very well land yourself a good deal. That is of course, if you have a few millions to spend.