SUNGAI GOLOK:The Genting Hotel's popular disco here, Genting Discotheque, has seen a sharp decline in visitors following the arrest of six Malaysians here earlier this month.
Sompoch Hongkittiyanonta, the hotel's managing director, said about 80 per cent of the disco's usual clientele used to be from Malaysia, particularly from Kelantan, and most would visit on weekends.
However, since the Nov 1 arrest of a popular female dikir barat singer here, which made national headlines, the hotel has reported a drastic drop in both disco attendance and hotel bookings.
"The majority of Malaysians who visit our disco that 'Genting Discotheque' are from Kelantan and apart from visiting the disco, they also stayed at our hotel.
"However, after the arrest of the six Malaysians for allegedly possession 6,000 pills, the number of visitors to the disco and those who stayed at our hotel, has dropped drastically.
"No Malaysians came to the disco since the six were nabbed on Nov 1 and the number of people from Malaysia who book our rooms also dropped," he said when met.
He said the hotel's disco has a capacity of 300 guests and it would normally be packed every weekend .
"Now, our disco has turned into a quiet place with no visitors at all," he added.
The music is slowing down for hotel bookings as well.
Before, Sompoch said the hotel was heavily booked but after the news went viral, they found it hard to rent 20 rooms a day.
"On normal day, we can rent rooms between 50 to 60 rooms a day but now, it is difficult for us to rent 20 rooms a day," he added.
He said the disco opens everyday from 10pm to 2am and entry fee is 350 baht (RM35).
Sompoch said that his hotel, which has been in operation for 30 years, heavily relies on Malaysian visitors.
"Our business has been severely affected since the incident," he said. "However, we want to assure our guests that their safety is a priority here, and this was an isolated incident."
The Genting Discotheque is one of the three popular nightspots in Pekan Sungai Golok, alongside Marina Hotel and Riviera.
The six Malaysians, including a well-known modern dikir barat singer, were arrested on Nov. 1 by Thai police during a raid at the hotel, where they were allegedly found in possession of 6,000 Yaba pills.
Yaba is a street name for a type of methamphetamine combined with caffeine.
"Our business has been greatly affected since the incident and we guarantee the safety of visitors here because the incident is an isolated case," he said.
The disco at Hotel Genting is one of the three popular pubs in Pekan Sungai Golok besides Marina Hotel and Riviera.