Tourism Minister Arief Yahya has expressed his opposition to the East Nusa Tenggara administration’s plan to temporarily close Komodo National Park to boost the population of the vulnerable giant lizard species, calling it "irrelevant".

The government plans to limit the number of visitors to Komodo National Park in East Nusa Tenggara in a bid to maintain the ecosystem’s stability following a fire that razed hectares of savanna in the famous tourist destination.