Below: Meeting in progress
It was about 9pm when we reached Pusat Komuniti Ibu Kota Wangsa Maju where the town hall forum was being held. New mayor Datuk Ahmad Fuad is touring town meeting residents- the previous night it was Segambut constituency and tonight was Wangsa Maju's turn. No Pakatan Rakyat MPs are invited for this meet-the-residents series- but Wangsa Maju MP Wee Choo Keong turned up anyway. Since the election it is becoming a trend for KL MPs to be ignored, side-stepped or totally uninvited for official functions- so 'gate-crashing' is nothing new to this MP.
The majority of attendees were UMNO folk from various sections of Wangsa Maju. It was an eye-opener to listen to grievances of Wangsa Maju folk, but after an hour or so, the occasion got a bit repetitive and monotonous. I could sense the Datuk Bandar's aching ears. The good -gracious audience was falling asleep. The list of problems were the same- developer matters, land issues, parking woes, clogged drains, poor maintenance of public amenities, etc etc. A quick check in the waiting room saw drivers, security personnel hammering away on their own GameBoy/ Nintendo sets while waiting for their 'masters'.
Overall, the meeting was more of an UMNO meeting which could do better with fairer presentation from all races in Wangsa Maju.
Update: I heard that the Datuk Bandar later clarified these events were organized by his office people and he had no knowledge that the Pakatan Rakyat KL MPs were excluded from the town hall meetings held in their respective constituencies.
Below: The mayor's official vehicle
Below: Having a word with Datuk Bandar
Video courtesy of LWT
The Datuk Bandar can certainly make up to the rest who were left out by having another session.
ReplyDeleteBravo to the new man who has started something different and I can sense that there is pressure for BN to improve...an early sign of the benefit of bi-partisan political struggle.
I want to praise 1 young chap, UMNO member or otherwise. The gist of what he said, contrary to the theme of one or two of the preceding speakers, was there are currently parking problems in Taman Bunga Raya.
ReplyDeleteHe remarked that TBR is mainly populated by Malay residents but TARC students are almost 100% Chinese. Due to the inconsiderate way of parking, there are arguments and tensions.
He explained that what is really a parking problem may look like a racial issue but it is really, really a parking problem only.
His solution of making TBR lanes a charging car park make sense but at the same time, it penalizes his friends or relatives who might drop by.
Alternately, TARC can appeal to students to be more considerate or encourage students to car pool. TARC really has some good bus services but being Malaysians, the students prefer to drive.
The other way is for DBKL officials to come and issue summons for inconsiderate parking like blocking access. If we operate merit points in Malaysia then it would have a telling effect. Otherwise, TARC might want to consider banning students from taking examines due to serious or persistent public mischief.
I agree with this point. TARC students should exercise responsibility while driving and parking in that area. There are also frequent accidents involving students' cars and bikes right at the main road junction entering into TARC. TARC should start road education for its students.
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