A debate has erupted among architects, town planners and heritage lovers over the country’s oldest wet market which vanished mysteriously during renovation and restoration work. Only a small section of one of the two buildings making up the Taiping Market stands.
Conservators and heritage lovers are puzzled and angry that, except for the small section known as Siang-Malam to locals, nothing remains to be seen of the original market buildings.
They are wondering if the two buildings, sans Siang-Malam, collapsed while restoration work was proceeding or if it was dismantled by those tasked with restoring it. Some are asking if the 139-year-old superstructure collapsed because of the restoration work.
Adding to the questions is the fact that the ground on which the market stood is empty except for some debris. Metal hoarding covers the entire area.
They seek answers as to why even the pillars were brought down when the mandate given to the authorities, especially the Taiping Municipal Council, was to restore the two buildings by retaining as many original parts as possible because the historic market is a tourist attraction.
This is especially so because only in January local government development minister Nga Kor Ming said the authorities would not “simply tear it down and rebuild” because of its historic nature.
The missing market would have gone unnoticed by heritage lovers and architects outside Taiping if not for several people who posted and shared the news on their social media accounts, causing a cascade of comments from architects, conservators and ordinary people.
Many participating in the debate, both online and in coffee shops, fear that any replacement – without at least the earlier superstructure or major parts of it remaining intact – would not enable the new buildings to qualify for Unesco recognition as world heritage buildings.
One of them, TCK, wrote on Facebook: “I am devastated to witness the destruction of an old and cherished market in Taiping. It breaks my heart to see the valuable and historical components of the market being treated as rubbish.”
Among those who commented on TCK’s thread was Hajeedar Abdul Majid, one of the foremost architects in the country, who simply said: “Idiotic decision”, with a sad-faced symbol attached.
A former resident, JA, wrote on his Facebook account: “What is this? There goes your world heritage nomination. Let’s hope it has been dismantled to be reconstructed.”
One heritage lover told me: “We need answers. This is a national heritage and the public, especially the Taiping public, has a right to know. The authorities, such as the Taiping Municipal Council, should inform the public about what’s happening.”
He said the authorities were supposed to renovate and restore the two blocks, one built in 1884 and the other in 1885, and that the Taiping Market was listed as a national heritage building under the Antiquities Act.
A Taiping resident, aged 82, said: “I heard that the buildings collapsed while they were restoring it but I’m not certain. It’s puzzling because we saw restoration work being done with the superstructure intact. Now, suddenly, the whole thing is gone. What went wrong? We need an explanation.”
The project to renovate and restore the two buildings goes back some years. In 2015, it was reported that the Taiping Market would be renovated and that market traders would be moved to a temporary site in Tupai, 2km away from the existing market.
“The new market will be built within two or three years,” the then council president Abd Rahim Md Ariff was quoted as saying by the media. He also said the project had actually been approved in 2008.
On April 19, 2019, the then housing and local government minister Zuraida Kamarudin said the government had allocated RM9 million to renovate the Taiping Market which housed 212 business lots on a total area of 0.4 hectares.
She said work on the two blocks of the market – each 60m long and 18m wide – would begin in 2020 and that it would be completed within two or three years.
On Jan 14 this year, Nga said renovation work was proceeding well, adding: “It is the pride of Perak and works are expected to be fully completed next year.”
“Taiping Market will be known as the first national heritage market in the country,” he told the media.
Nga said renovation work, which began in January 2021 at a cost of about RM9 million was taking time because the government wanted to maintain its unique features.
“It took some time to design the market. We cannot simply tear it down and rebuild,” he said.
Unfortunately, that seems to be what has happened – except for the Siang-Malam section, so called because in earlier years it operated 24 hours serving food to residents and traders stopping by at Taiping or bringing market produce. Before restoration work too food and beverages were sold at that section but stall operators closed around midnight.
According to a write-up by the town and country planning department: “The market buildings are made out of wooden pillars, a concrete slab, and zinc roofing. The market has a very high ceiling with a central truss that creates a two-level effect to the building’s sloping roof by forming a clerestory. This design creates a draft that carries hot air from the ground level up to the roofs, where it then dissipates through the louvres built into the ‘second-level’ of the roof. The markets are perfect examples of large 19th-century wooden buildings, and at the time were most probably the largest non-indigenous wooden buildings in the country.”
The Taiping Market, built using cast iron and cengal wood, was constructed and paid for by a wealthy Chinese mining towkay named Cheah Boon Hean. The design, however, was done by the public works department. It consisted of two buildings.
The older block, built in 1884, stretched from Main Road (now Jalan Taming Sari) to Kota Road (Jalan Kota). It housed stalls selling fish, fruits, vegetables and pork. The second building, built a year later, comprised a hawker centre, the Siang-Malam, and sections where beef, mutton and chicken were sold. It stretched from Kota Road to Theatre Road (Jalan Panggung Wayang).
Many Taiping residents and those who lived here but have since moved elsewhere look upon the market with nostalgia. And they take pride in the many historic buildings in their town, including the Taiping Market.
In the absence of any information from the authorities, rumours abound about substandard work, changes in contractors, incompetency and poor supervision.
The authorities have a duty to keep the people – especially Taiping residents – informed about why the building collapsed or was brought down, what they intend to do and whether this will affect any bid for Unesco heritage status. - FMT
The Taiping Market – built in 1884 – seen here in February while restoration work was progressing.
The writer can be contacted at kathirasen@yahoo.com
The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.
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