Ting (fifth left, front row) with Penghulu Samad (on Ting’s right) and others at the Ramadan Bazaar.
MIRI: The Ramadan bazaar is not only a place for trading and business, but also an avenue for people to meet up while patronising the stalls.
It is an open place for all levels of society, regardless of race or religion, to walk around mingling, exchanging a few words and smiles with one another and bolstering rapport.
That was the opinion of Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) Miri (Piasau) branch chairman Datuk Sebastian Ting when asked by The Borneo Post yesterday for his comments on the Ramadan bazaar.
“We respect this holy month of fasting for the Muslim community, but we also enjoy the opportunity and joy of walking around and meeting with anyone from all walks of life, either locals or visitors.
“While browsing, we buy whatever we favour so as to support the business of the traders and hawkers,” he asserted.
Ting sees the holy month of fasting as a season to meet friends and the public through the Ramadan bazaar, to understand better how traders conduct their business and savour all the nice food and drinks on sale.
“And if we bump onto friends whom we have not met for a long time, this is the time to rekindle friendship,” he said.
Ting noted that, besides Muslims, there were also Orang Ulu, Dayaks, Chinese, Indians and foreigners such as the Indonesians, Pakistanis, Bangladeshi and so forth visiting the bazaar, testimony that Miri is truly a cosmopolitan city in peace and harmony.
Ting, accompanied by a Malay community chief of Kampung Lereng Bukit, Penghulu Samad Alip, SUPP Miri (Piasau) branch secretary Karambir Singh and other SUPP members.
The person-in-charge of the bazaar, councillor Laila Mohamad, also joined the group.
According to Ting, they visited the bazaar at the Indoor Stadium yesterday which featured 230 stalls selling Muslim food, drinks, delicacies, cakes and lots more.
Their next visit would be to the Ramadan bazaar at Sebarkas Commercial Centre on June 8.