Public wants Tanjung Bidara beach revived as tourist spot

 

MALACCA POLLS | About two decades ago, local and international tourists thronged Tanjung Bidara beach in Malacca to delight in its beauty.

Located about 10km from Masjid Tanah under the Alor Gajah Municipal Council, its soft, white sandy beach beckoned visitors, offering them a retreat to relax their mind and body from the hustle and bustle of everyday life.

Deemed a worthy rival of Port Dickson in Negeri Sembilan for a short family vacation, Tanjung Bidara's bright future unfortunately slowly dimmed over the years as visitors prefer to spend their vacation at Pengkalan Balak beach instead, located about 4km away.

A private sector employee, who only wanted to be known as Tok Karim, 55, claimed that the presence of wild monkeys had led to the decline of visitors to the beach, prompting them to throng to Pengkalan Balak.

"This monkey problem has been going on for more than 10 years. It makes people who come for picnics feel uncomfortable as they are often disturbed by these monkeys, stealing their food.

“This has left the beach deserted even though the state government has spent a lot of money to build public facilities such as food stalls, gazebos for visitors to rest, bathrooms, parking spaces and so on but people still prefer the Pengkalan Balak beach,” he told Bernama.

Sharing his sentiment, Rosli Abd Saghir, 46, said the state government should take necessary actions to tackle the wild monkey issue so that the beach will once again be alive with visitors.

"Tanjung Bidara beach is very interesting because it is located in the bay area, so the beach is shallow and the waves are not very big, the water is also clear... suitable for family picnics and swimming," he added.

A visitor from Sitiawan, Perak, Mohd Azmi Mohd Nor, 56, said it was his first time at the beach, adding that he was disappointed that the area was not as lively as Pengkalan Balak.

He said he heard stories about Tanjung Bidara beach when he was young and decided to visit along with other tourist spots in Malacca.

“I admit the facilities here are good but I’m disappointed that only one food stall is open. Maybe the situation is different at weekends,” he added.

The beach is located in the Tanjung Bidara state constituency, considered a hot seat in the Malacca election as it is set to witness a three-cornered fight involving Umno state liaison committee chairperson Ab Rauf Yusoh, Bersatu's Deputy Minister in Prime Minister's Department (Parliament and Law) Mas Ermieyati who is also Masjid Tanah MP and Zainal Hassan of Pakatan Harapan. 

The Tanjung Bidara constituency has 10,1333 registered voters.

In the 14th general election, Md Rawi Mahmud of BN won the seat with a majority of 2,864 votes after he defeated Halim Bachik (PKR) and Imran Abdul Rahman (PAS).

The Election Commission (EC) has fixed early voting for the polls on Nov 16 and polling on Nov 20 following the dissolution of the state assembly after four state assemblypersons withdrew their support for then chief minister Sulaiman Md Ali's leadership.

- Bernama