KOTA KINABALU – Party-going patrons have been surging and rocking the city’s nightclubs since the establishments were allowed to reopen last Saturday following two years of closures due to the Covid-19 lockdown.
Operators of bars and clubs say that they are anticipating huge crowds later this month and the next due to the month-long Kaamatan celebration in the state.
Kaamatan, a harvest festival, is one of Malaysia’s celebrations that allows, but does not encourage, drinking alcohol, especially Sabah’s own tapai (rice wine).
Firdaus Abdullah, the 37-year-old manager of the Cock and Bull pub in Kota Kinabalu, said the outlet was packed to the rafters last night due to the Wesak day public holiday. “This will be a busy month,” he told The Vibes when contacted yesterday.
The crowds are slowly picking up. Last night it was packed and we expect a busy time tonight also.”
“All of us operators here expect the month will be very busy as the Kaamatan festival is this month.”
On May 12, the National Security Council issued a one-page guideline regarding the reopening of nightclubs, more than a month after the country reopened its borders.
Andy Michael, a worker at The Loft, which is next to Cock and Bull, agreed that crowds are gradually returning to the popular night entertainment area at the city’s waterfront, where both establishments are located.
“We have a full-piece band playing in our joint. The business is picking up slowly and it is unlike during the semi-lockdown period, where we only allowed soft entertainment and busking groups to entertain the crowd,” said Michael.
An outlet near the waterfront named Mynt Club was also seen to be bustling, with the club’s manager overseeing a moderate crowd entering his joint.
The manager, who only wished to be identified as Leslie, said he was glad the government has finally allowed some kind of entertainment in clubs.
However, he felt awkward seeing the empty dance floors. Leslie said he hopes for better days ahead for club operators like him.
As you can see many clubs were forced to close during the lockdown. We were making zero profits. Look at the 999 club in Kg Air. They had to close down. Now, the building is abandoned,” he said.
The 999 club downtown is a huge building and formerly a cinema. The club used to be very active before the pandemic, thanks to the state’s tourism boom.
Sabah is also seeing a gradual increase in foreign travellers following the reopening of the country’s borders on April 1.
However, the state only received its first batch of international tourists from Singapore in mid-April.
Meanwhile, Walter Simon, 42, who hails from Sandakan, said he was happy the state government has allowed nightspots to reopen, saying that with the reopening of the sectors, visitors now have an avenue to enjoy Kota Kinabalu’s nightlife.
“It used to be just sitting and sleeping inside the hotel. There’s not many things to do. Now I can walk around and go sightseeing after a day’s work here,” said Simon, who will return to Sandakan today. – The Vibes, May 16, 2022
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