KUCHING: The Ministry of Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts this year has approved a total of approximately RM4.6 million to support some 80 events under the Heritage, Arts and Culture Facilitation Fund, said Datuk Hii Chang Kee.
Its permanent secretary also stated that the RM4.6 million was earmarked to assist the state’s creative industry in recovering from the long period of inactivity caused by COVID-19.
“That means from April this year till now we have supported 80 events with the allocated funding, and as for today, we are grateful to Syn Soon Huat shop owner Goh Deng Choo for granting us consent to paint a mural of her on the wall next to her shop.
“I believe this is to provide some attractions for tourists to come and take pictures, as well as to portray the local culture of preparing traditional kuih (bite-sized snack or dessert items),” he said.
Hii disclosed this at a press conference today (Dec 21) after visiting Leonard Siaw’s ongoing artwork, a mural painting of Goh Deng Choo at Padungan Street here.
He stated that the ministry has supported nine book applications under the funding, and one of the nine books will be released on December 23, and it will be about the history of Padungan.
Kuching South City Council (MBKS) Mayor Datuk Wee Hong Seng was also present during the visit and expressed gratitude to the government for supporting the council’s efforts to promote the heritage street.
“According to our source, next year Padungan Street will be 100 years old, therefore I think it is time that all these murals will preserve the history of the profession and what people were doing here.
“I think importantly you can see the general development in Padungan so that’s why we had spent more time looking into this region on how to produce and how to bring back life into this heritage area.
Wee also stated that the council will examine the construction and architecture of the buildings in the Padungan area next year to preserve and ensure that the structures built in 1928 are properly maintained.
He noted that the council would be focusing and working on gastronomy, heritage, tourism, and numerous options such as murals because there was not much to entice tourists through the tourism industry in Padungan.
“We still need to work with our local communities, and we also need their support because the council alone even the ministry cannot do this, I have encouraged them to come out with any proposal, and in fact, you can see a lot of events that are undertaken by us, and that is one thing we are trying to do, to encourage private sectors’ involvement so that we’ll be able to move together.
“So we can create all this but if the local communities are not moving, then it will be a waste of our effort. That’s why we are looking forward to coming out with the full range of programmes and, of course, not forgetting we are trying to push for our environmental things to be established also,” he said.
He concluded this as MBKS ‘next project in collaboration with the ministry in achieving the target of attracting more people to Padungan.
