Where is Yen Yen? Langkawi needs to be clean, not build more hotels

Don't turn Langkawi into a sea-slum

Mariam Mokhtar, Malaysia Chronicle

Speaking at the official launch of Teluk Datai Resort’s Development Plan in Langkawi, Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak said that Langkawi needed new impetus to become a premier tourist destination in the world.

He confirmed that projects worth RM1bil would be invested in Teluk Datai via its investor, Teluk Datai Resorts Sdn Bhd and Khazanah Nasional.

Najib said that the redevelopment process and the promotion of tourism would create value to the country: “The development is not only for Teluk Datai but for Langkawi as a whole. Many people said Langkawi was a loss after Tun Dr Mahathir’s era as prime minister.”

Langkawi is a ‘loss’ not because it lacks premier golf courses or 6 star hotels with private beaches. There are many reasons the island is failing as a tourist destination, chief among them is cleanliness.

On landing at the Langkawi international airport, and while waiting for the luggage to appear on the carousel, all one has to do is to visit the toilets which are adjacent to this carousel.

Locals might be ‘used’ to ‘Malaysian style’ public toilets with floors that are an inch deep in water, toilet rolls missing from the cubicles and doors with locks missing. Tourists get a taste of what to expect. Most people make a hasty retreat and wait till they reach their hotel where the facilities are more hygienic.

What happened to litter bins?

Another reason why tourism in Langkawi is going downhill is the litter. Plastic bags and polystyrene containers are strewn everywhere, on the roads, beaches and beside buildings. It appears that few care about the litter situation, in their desperate rush to chase after the tourist dollar. Education will help and a serious promotional drive on cleanliness, by Tourism Malaysia is needed.

Not all tourists are honeymooning couples who will stay in their hotel rooms and the confines of their luxury hotel. Langkawi lacks an efficient and cheap public transport system. Hired cars are expensive and buses are irregular. Many people only venture to places that are within walking distance because they refuse to pay exorbitant charges for transport.

Driving on Langkawi roads can be risky. Motorbikes weave in and out of traffic, few raod users observe traffic rules and at night, buffaloes roam the road and are a hazard. The condition of the roads is pitiful.

The island may wish to promote tourism, but it fails miserably in its effort to accommodate the needs of disabled people. Buildings lack suitable ramps for wheelchair users and the facilities in hotels, restaurants and attractions are not disabled friendly.

Attractions like the snake sanctuary and the aquarium are not well-maintained, with litter strewn, broken glass enclosures or cages that are empty. All these make the tourist feel short-changed.

Moreover, foreigners will get their first taste of racism, when they find that entrance fees are different for locals and foreigners.

Another sore-point is the lack of medical facilities as not all hotels or guest houses have a doctor-in-the-house.

Measures for improvement are of little use if it is found that the religious authorities are going to make lives miserable for tourists. Few will forget how an elderly American couple was harassed in their apartment whilst awaiting their yacht to be repaired, a few years ago. Any negative publicity will only drive people up north, to the islands of Thailand.

Langkawi is slowly losing its charms with acres of land being flattened for constructing golf courses and 5 or 6 star hotels. If Najib is sincere about wanting the population of Langkawi to benefit from tourism, he needs to go back to basics, improve infrastructure and upgrade the cleanliness levels. He won’t even need RM1 billion for that.

Maybe YenYen could be persuaded to go to Langkawi instead of traipsing the world, perhaps?