GEORGE TOWN, Oct 3 — Seri Mutiara, the Penang governor’s official residence along Jalan Utama, should be opened for guided tours, state assemblyman Jason Ong Khan Lee said today.
Built in 1890, the building was previously known as The Residency.
“They can have fixed visiting hours and allow only guided tours of the building,” he said.
He added the tours can be tied with visits to the nearby Suffolk House, another heritage building.
He pointed out that the two were connected by a waterway.
“Seri Mutiara is a historical and iconic mansion and I am sure there are many people who will be interested to visit the mansion and its garden, where a river runs through its compound,” he said.
Proceeds could be used to maintain the residence and its grounds, he said.
Ong said his proposal was inspired by a recent visit to the Royal Palace in Cambodia.
The Bangkok Palace and governor’s mansions in other countries were similarly open to the public, he said.
“So, we should do the same, we can even open up the chief minister’s official residence, Seri Teratai, and include it in a package tour with the other two buildings, Seri Mutiara and Suffolk House,” he said.
Seri Mutiara has historical value that should be made more prominent, he added.
The Residency was built at the cost of $81,173 back in 1890.
The 6th Resident Councillor of Penang Allan Maclean Skinner was the first occupant of the mansion.
Currently, Penang’s Seventh Governor Tun Abdul Rahman Abbas lives there.
