“Please Stop This Act”: Villagers Of Kg Morten Suffer Loss Of Tourism Due To Viral Photos Of Floods

By Quinny Tan  •  07 Jan 2022 in News

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Residents of the Malay heritage village, Kg Morten, are having their businesses suffer due to photos of their town during the floods going viral.

The photos were said to be taken from a nearby high-rise building, which allowed for a misconception of the actual flood situation in the area, says Kg Morten Development and Security Committee chairman Jalina Mahmood.

She said it was irresponsible and had affected the tourism sector, specifically small food traders.

“The photos do not show what actually happened in Kg Morten at the end of last week as not all houses here were flooded but only (those located at) a small section of this village. This is because they are located on a lower ground than other houses.

“Moreover, floods are not unusual occurrences in Kg Morten as it is located next to Melaka River, which frequently overflows to this village during high tide or a long period of heavy rain,” said Jalina.

Apparently, the frequent flooding in the village is not as serious as the pictures depict them to be, with only a few houses being submerged whilst flood waters receded quickly.

She added that following the viral photos, many of the traders lost their source of income as tourists and visitors did not enter the village, especially last Sunday, and there were still less visitors until yesterday.

Food trader, Amnah Othman, 64, said her business had been affected since.

However on Saturday, despite heavy rain, Kg Morten still received many visitors, who came just to walk around or eat. There was also a homestay for accommodation, but after the photos went viral, no visitors dared to enter the village.

“Business was really bad last Sunday, and until yesterday, it was still less compared to before the photos were circulating the internet. Usually, there had been a string of cars entering this village,” she said.

Sharing his feelings of disappointment and sadness, Sofian Jaafar, 35, said his family’s five-year-old food business had also been affected by the deceiving photos.

Born in the village, he said people did not feel unsafe to enter Kg Morten when the situation was unlike that pictured.

“Perhaps, some people believe that Kg Morten is like an island now, but I am appealing to them, especially the outsiders, not to spread inaccurate news as this has adversely affected our business.

A resident, Salim Abu, 65, said the flood that occurred had only affected a row of houses in Lorong Tun Mamat 1 due to its proximity to the river, as well as some houses along another lane.

“The photos taken from above do not show the whole village area but only focusing on the location along the river. My house is also at Lorong Tun Mamat 1, but it was not flooded.

He urges the public to stop ‘viraling’ the photos for the sake of food traders and many other villagers who are upset by this.