KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 1 — The ebb and flow of business at a popular banana leaf rice restaurant in Taman Melawati best explains voters’ sentiment in this affluent Selangor township which is under the Gombak constituency.
Despite grouses about “problems” brought about by perceived over-development, many of the residents here say they will stick with incumbent Datuk Seri Azmin Ali, who is also Selangor Mentri Besar, in the upcoming 14th general election.
For 36-year-old Mohana Raj, whose family has run banana leaf rice restaurant Thurkah’s since 1995, the surrounding development has hit them where it hurts most: their bottomline.
“Our revenue has dropped by 30 per cent since it all started in 2014. Now there’s bad traffic congestion and it takes people around 30 minutes to navigate around here. So, we lost many customers who couldn’t be bothered with the traffic jam,” Mohana told Malay Mail Online.
Mohana said his family has even discussed the possibility of shutting the restaurant down.
He pointed out that his parents’ age and the declining profit margins have made their business less viable. To compound the problem, the Goods and Services Tax (GST) introduced by the federal government in 2015 has increased his cost by 20 per cent.
“We haven’t raised our prices in years. And we cannot raise our price either or else we will lose customers. Some of our regulars used to come here for banana leaf rice but now they just order a thosai or two since it’s cheaper,” he added.
Mohana, who also owns a small accounting firm, thinks it may be better for him to focus on the firm instead of trying to juggle both businesses at once.
However, his father, 70-year-old Ramasamy Chinasamy has a completely different perspective of the situation.
“All this development is good for business. My son thinks we are doing badly now but wait until the office buildings are occupied. In two to three years, we will have more customers,” said Ramasamy.
In a walkabout to gauge public sentiment, Malay Mail Online spoke to 48 Taman Melawati voters from the ages of 26 to 70, comprising of 25 men and 23 women from all three major ethnicities.
Although many were distinctly unhappy with the increased traffic, lack of parking space, loss of profit and a belief that promises were broken, they admit that their problems were mostly domestic in nature compared to the benefits the state enjoys under Azmin’s leadership.
The majority showed lack of trust towards the Barisan Nasional (BN) led federal government with many citing corruption scandals plaguing government related agencies or companies as reasons to cast their ballots for Pakatan Harapan (PH).
They find the increase in cost of doing business and cost of living have had an adverse impact on their lives.
Laundry owner Liew Oi Leng, 50, also complained about lack of parking space and more traffic.
“Who would want to spend more than 30 minutes sending their laundry and another 30 minutes to pick it up? My revenue has dropped by 30 per cent over the last few years. It’s all because of these developments,” she complained.
However, when asked whether their support for Azmin has waned in light of what has happened, most said they would still cast their ballot for him.
In their eyes, the fact that Selangor is Malaysia’s richest state that provides free water, interest-free micro-credit loans, wedding incentives and funeral expenses among others is a reflection of a government that cares for its citizens.
Mohana and his father added that the Indian community have trusted BN coalition partner MIC for far too long for too little results.
Displeasure about ‘controversial’ developments?
Some of the completed projects include Melawati Mall, apartment Serini Melawati and Melawati Corporate Centre developed by Sime Darby Property Bhd.
The biggest controversy surrounds the proposed Melawati Convention Centre that might be facing an investigation by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).
At the time of writing, Taman Melawati Resident Association Zone ABC chairman Razman Hakimi Abdullah said he will be filing a report with MACC soon.
“They told me they needed more documents when I saw them last week. I have those documents ready and I will head straight to Putrajaya MACC office the moment they call me,” Razman said.
Razman and many residents felt “cheated” by Azmin’s administration and Sime Darby Property because the convention centre was originally proposed as a “Central Park” for the neighbourhood.
In a protest on September 8, the residents claimed that the Ampang Jaya Municipal Council made a U-turn on its decision to approve the park after it received instructions from the Selangor state government.
“They may still vote Azmin on a federal level but I think they will show their displeasure to Pakatan Harapan’s state assemblyman candidate, whoever that is,” Razman warned, saying that his neighbours are prepared to “slaughter the scapegoat” so to speak.
Taman Melawati falls under the Hulu Kelang state constituency whose incumbent is Saari Sungib from Parti Amanah Negara.
For the youths of Taman Melawati, action speaks louder than words and their ballots will go to the best candidate regardless of party.
Self-professed former staunch Umno supporter, 33-year-old Syed Khaled Abdullah said he will only reconsider his vote if Umno youth chief and Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin challenges Azmin’s seat.
“Azmin is doing a good job. He’s not really around anymore after becoming Mentri Besar but his representatives are always here. I don’t think Barisan Nasional has anyone on his level... except Khairy.
“I wouldn’t know who to vote if Khairy fights him,” said the entrepreneur who sees the face-off between the two politicians akin to prize heavyweight boxers duking it out in the ring.
Hazwan Hakimi, a 26-year-old equities dealer, on the other hand, has had enough of the developments in his housing area.
“When I first voted, I voted Azmin. Not again. This time, I’m going to look at the candidates. I think Azmin is not that friendly, he stopped coming here after he became MB. And then all this accumulated development has created chaos here.
“This was not what he promised. He basically broke his promise to us,” said Hazwan whose major issue is traffic jams that added roughly 30 minutes to his daily commute.
Accounts executive Chloe Chen, however, pointed out that what they are facing is simply the price of development.
“I myself have mixed feelings over Melawati Mall. It’s good to have that cinema and makes shopping easier but it also causes a lot of traffic jams. But we can’t allow emotions over what’s going on in our backyard to stop us from looking at the bigger picture.
“The bigger picture is Azmin is good for the country. He has done great for the state. That’s why I will vote for him,” the 27-year-old said, although she did not elaborate.
