Behind the Old Man Mural at Oldtown White Coffee, Ipoh

It caused a stir back in 2014 when many parties claimed that the management of the Oldtown White Coffee outlet in Padang, Ipoh, had chosen a portrait of the Malayan Communist Party (MCP) terrorist leader, Chin Peng, for a mural on their business building wall.

However, the situation was clarified by the management of the Oldtown White Coffee outlet in Padang, Ipoh, by displaying the actual individual used as the model for the mural to avoid any confusion, and it was never intended to glorify Chin Peng, the leader of the Malayan Communist Party (MCP).

Because the issue became controversial and went viral on social media, affecting the public, a statement was issued by the Ipoh City Council (MBI) together with the management of Oldtown White Coffee to clarify the identity of the person behind the old man mural that was alleged to be Chin Peng.

For your information, loyal readers of orangperak.com, the mural of the old man holding a cup of coffee is an individual named Lim Peng Swee @ Lim Peng Sooi from Penang. He was a neighbor to the mural artist, Ernest Zacharevic, from Lithuania.

In reality, the mural painting was an initiative by Oldtown White Coffee itself to support their corporate social responsibility (CSR) program, and the cost of the mural work was fully funded by the Oldtown White Coffee management.

The efforts of the private sector to develop and turn mural art into a tourism product in Ipoh will increase visitor numbers, subsequently boosting the economy for businesses in Ipoh City. Various murals have been produced by local artists in Old Town Ipoh and New Town Ipoh (Jalan Masjid), featuring themes such as nature, culture, architecture, and tourism.