FEBRUARY 14 — I refer to the article ‘Historian raps Penang over demolition of Stamford Raffles’ last standing home in Asia’ published by the Malay Mail on Friday February 12, 2016. In particular I refer to the statement by Marcus Langdon on the demolishment of annex buildings one of which has been occupied by Sir Stamford Raffles whose historical legacy needs no elaboration.

I would like to share some thoughts on this unfortunate incident in particular to the statement that the State government had opined that it was unable to prevent the demolition of the several annex buildings to the Runnymede Hotel in Jalan Sultan Ahmad Shah in Penang in light of the planning permission allegedly granted to the developer concerned by the then Penang Island Municipal Council (MPPP) in 1999.

The design of this annex at a glance from photographs appears to be of the ‘Sino Malay Palladian’ style which has been recognised by the National Heritage Department as eligible for statutory protection and conservation provided that a historical figure or event has been associated with it. This is provided at section 67 of the Act. This requirement has been clearly met by the occupation of Sir Stamford Raffles at the relevant building since demolished. The planning permission stated as being granted in 1999 has clearly not taken into consideration the National Heritage Act subsequently passed by Parliament in 2005.

An aerial view of the iconic Runnymede Hotel shows rubble of the structures that were torn down. ― Malay Mail pic

There are federal government guidelines available an exemplary instance of this is the local government formulation of guidelines seen in the federal government’s Jabatan Perancangan Bandar dan Desa Semenanjung Malaysia in its brochure ‘Warisan Senibina dan Kepentingan Sejarah’ which states that for the purposes of the Town and Country Planning Act 1976 (Act 172), the department recognises in urban planning and building conservation that ‘Sino Malay Palladian’ buildings are an example of heritage buildings requiring conservation ie ‘Contoh Senibina Bangunan Warisan yang Terdapat Di Malaysia’.

This generation of Malaysians may unfortunately be witness to the loss of a vast majority of colonial architectural structures and buildings within this generation itself and this will be attributed to lack of will as well as ignorance by all parties concerned on the statutory rights conferred by federal planning and heritage laws to prevent the loss of Malaysia architectural heritage. Had the Heritage Department been informed all that would have been required is a site visit and evidence of its historical connection which is available from research carried out by historian Marcus Langdon, who authored a book on Penang’s history entitled: “Penang: The Fourth Presidency of India 1803-1830″. A current example of a successfully registered heritage building under the National Heritage Act 2005 of the Sino Malay Palladian design is the Hutton Lodge in George Town, Penang.

* V. Vishnu Kumar is a Petaling Jaya resident who reads the Malay Mail Online.

** This is the personal opinion of the writer and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail Online.