Mention Chew Jetty to any Penangite, and they would tell you of scenery featuring houses being built on wooden stilts above seawater, motorcycles revving their way through narrow walkways, and of course, the famed ‘Girl on Scooter’ mural which has attracted tourists far and wide.
Recently however, this mural located at George Town’s UNESCO World Heritage Site has gone viral once again, albeit for a less than pleasant reason.
What happened so far
In case you haven’t caught up with the news yet, the mural came under the public spotlight after a tourist from China named Shen Shishi added a panda to the ‘Girl on Scooter’ mural.
However, her actions won no love from netizens, who promptly bashed her for disrespecting the mural’s owner by painting over the mural without prior permission and vandalising the art piece.
It was later revealed in a surprising twist that Shen was actually invited by the mural owner to draw the panda onto the mural itself, adding that he found her style “creative”.
Alas, this did little to convince the Penang City Council (MBPP) otherwise, who issued a notice ordering the mural owner to repaint the wall as the panda mural was a violation of Section 82 of the Local Government Act 1976.
Given the level of attention the mural was garnering, it was only natural for me to head over to Chew Jetty and get the thoughts of those residing or doing business there over the matter.
‘We weren’t aware of the rule at all!’
Upon arriving at Chew Jetty, I immediately made a beeline to the mural, where I wasn’t surprised to see tourists posing for photos with it, especially after the boost of visibility it got following Shen’s antics.
My first interviewee of choice was the mural owner as I was hoping to have an insider’s look into his thoughts over the ongoing controversy, but instead I was met with disappointment as he wasn’t around at the time.
I then turned my attention to the vendors who have been earning a livelihood at Chew Jetty for years and thankfully found a chatty vendor who was eager to voice her opinions.
The vendor, who I’ll call ‘Ms. J’, said the ‘Girl on Scooter’ mural was first painted many years ago and encountered no issues.
When I asked her whether she was aware that one had to submit an application to MBPP if they wanted to make an addition to an existing mural at Chew Jetty, she expressed surprise and said no one was notified of it.
The mural has been around for so many years and now MBPP is saying that adding a panda to it is illegal. None of us were aware this rule existed!
“While I understand that drawing on walls along public roads is illegal, Chew Jetty is akin to a small ‘kampung’ for all of us here. Many of the folks here aren’t highly educated and have the notion of “This is my home and I can do whatever I want with it”. So if there’s such a rule, you need to let us know beforehand.”
Another vendor named Hebi voiced similar sentiments, saying he also wasn’t aware of the rule.
“For me, I see the panda mural as something positive as it’s another piece of art that can attract more tourists. As for those who opposed Shen for painting the panda, I don’t think it’s a bad thing as she had already asked for permission beforehand.
“I also don’t quite understand why the mural owner has to make an application or repaint the mural. It’s his home so why should MBPP interfere?”
Takeaway lessons
Despite the uproar that surrounded the mural, ‘Ms J’ said there were some positives to glean from the incident.
“Through this incident, residents at Chew Jetty are now aware that they must submit an application beforehand if they want to commission others to modify existing murals.
“As for tourists, they now know that they also have to abide by this rule and do prior research before undertaking future art projects. All in all, both sides have learnt something in the process.”
In a latest update to the matter, the mural owner has since filed an application to keep the panda mural in tact and is awaiting its verdict by MBPP.
But whether or not the application is successful, one thing’s for sure: Chew Jetty will continue to be a place that merges tradition and modernity together — just like how it did for over 100 years.
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