MELAKA:The 134-year-old red clock tower, located at Dutch Square at Stadthuys here, is one of the main tourist draws.
The chief guard of the clock tower, Fadlina Mohni, 43, said as early as 8am, local and foreign tourists would gather around the 15.2m-high clock tower, built in 1886, to take pictures.
‘More commonly known as the Tan Beng Swee Clock Tower, it was built about 61 years after the Dutch surrendered Melaka to the British.
‘It is not as old as the Dutch colonial administration building, Stadthuys, which was built in 1650.
‘Now 100 years old, the clock has never stopped, because over the years, it has been cleaned and serviced, with every component tested to ensure it can function for another 134 years or longer.’
Fadlina, who is senior electrical engineer for the Historical Melaka City Council’s (MBMB) Department of Engineering said the clock tower was also a symbol of family love, because it was built by a son who wanted to fulfill his father’s request.
According to history, the clock tower was built by Tan Jiak Kim, a Peranakan Chinese philanthropist who wanted to fulfill the wishes of his late father, Tan Beng Swee, who dreamed of a clock tower in the heart of Melaka when he was alive.
‘After Tan Beng Swee’s death, the clock tower was built at the Stadthuys building near Queen Victoria’s Fountain, the Cheng Ho Cultural Museum and Christ Church. Each of the four clock faces, with a diameter of 34.5cm featuring Roman numerals, was imported from England.
‘Then, in 1982, the four clocks were replaced with ones from Japan’s Seiko brand, much to the chagrin of senior citizens in Melaka, who remembered their harsh treatment and suffering under the Japanese occupation.’
Fadlina, who oversees the clock tower, also known as the Bandar Hilir Red Clock Tower,hoped that the clock tower would continue to be maintained and preserved.
Fadlina’s assistant, Mohd Suhaimi Idris, 36, an assistant electrical and facilities engineer at MBMB, said the 24-volt clock had a global positioning system to provide time.
‘In collaboration with the Melaka Health Department, we installed a predatory bird sound system, which plays the sound for 45 seconds with one-minute- long intervals.
‘This is to prevent crows and pigeons from perching and defecating around the clock tower.’
It is among the core zones recognised as a Unesco World Heritage Site