A joker who want to scrap all the mega projects

Yesterday, read a post from Peter Tan's blog titled "Screw you, Penangites!". It is about statement made by Azahar who is the Penanga assemblyman who on process of persuading the federal government to cancel the entire project planned to the state of Penang. The statement received a bad respond to all the people included the Gerakan President Koh Tsu Koon who urges the planned project to be continued. Azahar doesn't put it to considerate that tax paid to the federal government by the local. He act like he own Penang by birth right and can do whatever he want include taking revenge over the people who vote against the Barisan Nasional.

I understand, the development of this project is good. The problem is real purpose and who really will get the benefits from all this development. The Penang Chief Minister exposed to the public saying the second Penang Bridge project doesn't yet approved to be run. To the knowledge to the public, this project continues despite received many complaints from the public on some area especially the land dispute. This proof the project doesn't have a public approval to build and not really benefits the local generally.




I believe there will be no problem for the local if the bridge was scrapped. The most insignificant thing about this second bridge is the design. The two observation platform doesn't fits serve a real purpose of bridge building. Many countries around the world build bridge to ease the traffic congestion in a city. By having not one but two observation platform, this bridge going to be congested with people and cars who want to visit the bridge. In the same time, congestion will happen not only from the island but from the main land too. Why can't they build bridge same as other people around the world? This additional structure certainly will adding up the building cost of the bridge that believe to be whopping 3 billion ringgit Malaysia. I would like to see the extra cost spent on the observation platform well spent on the technology that will be able to accommodate more capacity traffic flow on the bridge and at the same time lower the congestion on the first bridge.

I would like to suggest that the Penang government to redesign the bridge main plan and exclude the observation platform that only serve a permanent grip hold on the bridge to specific interest corporation. The new Penang Government can try to take over the management of this bridge and distribute the contract opportunity transparently and fair. Never do Azahar know that Penang contribute a large portion of tax money to the federal government. Without the tax money, the governments don’t have any money to spend and to call it theirs. It doesn't matter if the bridge project scrapped by the federal government. If the new Barisan Rakyat willing to take the task, they can run the project themselves and show it to all Malaysian they can run a state and build a bridge by themselves, they certainly qualify to run a nation as well in future.