Goodbye, Penang…

A resident rues the changes that are taking away Penang’s old world charm.

COMMENT

By Noor Aiman Muhammad Rizal

I have been studying in Kuala Lumpur for almost three years and really look forward to returning to my hometown in Penang, not just for the food but to escape the bustling life of the city where I feel swamped and suffocated.

I am sure I am not the only city dweller who feels this way.

In Penang I take long drives from my house in Batu Maung to Gurney Drive and Permatang Damar Laut to see fishermen cast their nets.

These are the places I proudly promote to my international friends on their summer break. However I realise I may have to say goodbye to both due to the land reclamation projects there.

Over the years, I see more green areas being turned into “affordable” homes and “accessible” roads to accommodate higher traffic. I already see less of the sea shore and beaches that Penang was at one time famous for.

Somehow the Penang state government does not seem to value these pockets of greenery. I heard three new islands might pop up out of nowhere. As a result, we might see more “botak hills” as the soil for reclamation has to come from somewhere.

I see pollution of our coasts, the dying of our greens, unpredictable weather, more floods and maybe even drought in the near future.

I feel that I am slowly losing my Penang. What if one day I will not be able to call Penang my home?

What if one day Penang can no longer be a getaway for me? Well, if you are wondering, that is what the Penang Transport Master Plan (PTMP) will eventually do to Penang and wipe out forever my beautiful memories of it.

To me, Penang is beautiful and unique as it is now. With the PTMP and its Light Rail Transit (LRT), more highways and wider roads, it will become another Kuala Lumpur. Yes, Penang will lose its human face and become an island designed for cars and traffic jams.

I don’t understand why cars are given priority over pedestrians and cyclists and why the island is slowly being destroyed to make way for more. That is what the PTMP will do. To accommodate more cars, we are giving away our precious resources which could be better utilised for the welfare of Penangites.

And what about the likelihood of flash floods? If the PTMP is implemented, we should prepare for flash floods like the recent ones in Permatang Damar Laut and Bayan Lepas caused by road construction and further development.

I will not be enjoying the view in Permatang Damar Laut anymore. All I will see in the near future will be land reclamation works and the construction of three man-made islands. We have not learnt from past reclamation endeavours and how they have destroyed Gurney Drive. Erosion and sedimentation will hit Penang’s coastline in no time.

In this hectic, self-engrossed world we live in today, I need my Penang to help me keep in touch with nature, to slow down, reflect and see things clearly.

I need Penang to enable me to appreciate the simple things in life, the pleasant trips I take to the town, the morning jogs along Gurney Drive and eating laksa by Permatang Damar Laut.

So we can forget about our selfies by Gurney Drive, forget about the strolls and drives, forget about leaving an hour early to catch a movie. Just forget about the Penang we all know.

Our realities and lives in Penang will change forever if we don’t stop to think of what we want from Penang and ask whether we really need the PTMP.

Noor Aiman Muhammad Rizal is an FMT reader.