Jun 29, 2010
No big change yet in Selangor
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| Sticking out: The billboard in the compound of the MBPJ landscape department building in Kelana Jaya. |
There has been a mixed response to the new councillors in Selangor. Some people are unhappy with the lack of positive change in the local authorities while others feel there has been better service and ratepayers money has been used prudently. StarMetro reports on the situation.
IT HAS been two years since the Pakatan Rakyat councillors took over the local councils in Selangor.
With the change of government in 2008, the people of Selangor eagerly awaited the new councillors, some who were very vocal as members of the opposition or as NGOs,
After two years, many have yet to see the big change they were hoping for while several incidents caused uneasiness among the people.
In the Subang Jaya Municipal Council (MPSJ), the councillors were put in the limelight when 11 out of 10 councillors voted in favour to cancel the revocation of the development order at a special meeting in April.
This came as a shocker to Subang Jaya residents because the councillors had unanimously agreed to revoke the development order for the project in the October 2009 full-board meeting.
As a city inhabited by a large number of middle and upper-class residents with buying power, Petaling Jaya has also been a gold mine for billboard operators.
Illegal billboards have been a long-standing issue for the council and the new guidelines implemented after 2008 have yet to show its effectiveness in ridding Petaling Jaya of the problem.
Even with the guidelines, residents still complain about new billboards being put up at places where they were not supposed to be at.
In December 2009, the councillors in the billboard inspection committee even allowed a billboard to be erected within the compound of its landscape department building in Kelana Jaya.
With a promise to remove the billboard within three months after the issue was highlighted, the giant billboard still stands inside the compound.
In Klang, the relocation of the bus terminal from the town centre to Klang Sentral in Meru, about 10km away, irked commuters and bus operators.
The decision to shift the bus terminal operation to the RM12mil custom-built transport hub caused frustration among the public, particularly the poor who depend on public transport to get around.
Many questioned the wisdom of the authorities to close the terminal and the need for new pick-up points at the North Klang bus terminal.
It was reported that several councillors are working against the state’s ruling to allow the North Klang bus terminal to operate.
These councillors, according to traders from the area, were desperate to prevent the buses from using the former terminal.
Even with the Pakatan government calling for competency, accountability and transparency, residents still end up being frustrated over the difficulty in getting information.
Most council full board and committee meeting minutes are still classified as confidential and, so far, none of the councillors from any of the councils seem to be interested in getting this changed.
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