Friday 2 May 2014

Persatuan Melayu Pulau Pinang (PEMENANG) 1927-present


The Penang Malay Association (PMA)
Persatuan Melayu Pulau Pinang (PEMENANG)
60, Jalan Pemenang
Pulau Pinang
Web: http://www.pemenang.org.my/
Established: Sunday, 27 March 1927 in Georgetown, Penang
History: http://www.pemenang.org.my/sejarah/sejarah-penubuhan/


In 1911, the Young Muslim Union (YMU) was established in Penang. It catered for Muslims who had British educational background. These Muslims would then serve as lower officers in the British administration. There was another group who were the elite few. The two groups were combined to form the Penang Malay Association (PMA).

The first president of PMA was Dr Ali bin Othman Merican (Dr AO Merican), who was Penang's first Muslim and Malay doctor, who later moved to Kota Bharu, Kelantan in 1927. The deputy presidents were Tuan Mohamad Rauf bin Chik, Tuan MZ Merican, and Tuan Mohamad Jashim b Iskandar. The secretary was Dr Kamil Mohamed Ariff b Kader Mastan. The treasurer was Tuan MN Merican. The committee members were: Tuan A Abdullah, Tuan MS Ariffin, Tuan UM Bakar, Tuan CM Che Din @ Che Din Allen Dennys (CM Hashim), Tuan Hj Murshid, Tuan Mohamad Hussain, Tuan T Nyak Puteh, and Tuan S Mohamad Thambi. The accountants were Tuan C Mohamad Ismail and Tuan Kapten Baba Ahmad (this person is not Badariah's father).

The Penang Malay Association (Persatuan Melayu Pulau Pinang, PEMENANG) was established on Sunday, March 1927. A group photograph was taken and the first GM was held on 9 May 1927.

The previous PEMENANG premise was built on a piece of land obtained from Dr Lim Chong Eu, then Penang Chief Minister in the 1970s. The PEMENANG was housed in a brick building at 117, Macalister Road.

The PEMENANG now occupies the Bangunan Persatuan Melayu Pulau Pinang, a 2-storey building at 60 Jalan Pemenang.


External links:
Lawatan TYT Yang Di-Pertua Pulau Pinang ke Rumah Teh Bunga (12 Mac 2010)
Pengkisahan Sejarah PEMENANG (2007)
http://www.penang-traveltips.com/penang-malay-association_pemenang.htm
http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/newspapers/Digitised/keyword=mahomed+ariff&token=ariff

Dr Hutton

A British doctor, Dr Hutton was the only registered physician in Penang in 1805. Hutton Lane is named after him. The road has been renamed to Jalan Hatin. The mosque on this road has been named Masjid Jamek Jalan Hatin.

There are many interesting stories told of Hutton Lane but not the doctor. Ami Aziz lived here with his Japanese wife after the war. Dr Kamil Ariff had his clinic around the left corner on Penang Road, a photo of which appears in a book by Salma Khoo Nasution. The second site of the Chowrasta Malay School is across the road from the mosque, and exists here till today. Among the Malay doctors who attended this Malay school was Dr Abdul Aziz bin Omar, a Penangite who moved to Kota Bharu, Kelantan, whose second child (son) recently passed away in KL.

Hutton Lane or Jalan Hatin is still important to Penang. It has a large old Malay house called the Tea House, which is now a Malay gallery. I have given information about the early Malay doctors to be included for display at the Tea House, especially information about the Hajj where Penang port served as the most important port for the Malay Peninsula till 1963.

I have walked down Hutton Lane a few times and peered into some of the deserted dilapidated shop houses. It feels sad that stories of this place have disappeared along with its original inhabitants. The doors, windows and floor tiles of the shop houses tell of a thriving business here long ago. An interesting find is the shop houses are small and short compared to the shop houses of Malacca around Jonker Street area. The front lobby or living-room is very small and fits a table. Then, there is a staircase which is covered at the sides. I could not see beyond the staircase as I did not enter the locked premises. I just wondered, the shop owners must have operated in very small spaces, and must have made it great. I could not figure out where Dr Hutton had his clinic if indeed it was in Hutton Lane in 1805.



Related books:

  1. City Council of Georgetown, Penang. Penang Past and Present, 1786-1963. 1966. Ganesh Printing Works. 17 pp.  
  2. Committee of Penang Festival ’86. Well-Known Persons. In: Historical Personalities of Penang. Phoenix Press Sdn Bhd, Penang. 1986. Pp. 173-179.
Travel tips: