MELAKA: The century-old St Francis Xavier Church requires assistance from the Melaka Government to restore its ageing structure, says Kota Melaka MP Khoo Poay Tiong.
He said the church located in the core zone of the World Heritage Site is over 176 years old and a historical icon for the state.
"Hence, I urge the state government to assist the stakeholders of the church to fund the restoration works and conserve our heritage," he said on Sunday (Jan 5).
Khoo added that the construction now is valued at RM6mil, saying that this is a lot of money to raise.
He had earlier handed over RM247,743.60 from the Housing and Local Government's Non-Islamic House of Worship (RIBI) programme and RM50,000 from his parliamentary allocation to the church's committee at Bandar Hilir.
Khoo then said that any restoration work at the church must comply with the requirements set by The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) due to its historical value.
"Hence, certain construction materials for the restoration works had to be sourced from Europe," said Khoo, adding that the restoration started early last year and is scheduled to be completed by July this year.
Khoo said he will also suggest to the Tourism, Arts and Culture Ministry to provide help to the church.
