SEPTEMBER 20 — We all know KLCC Twin Tower has always been the most symbolic building in Malaysia that we all are really proud of. However, in recent years, there have been a significant trend of skyscraper buildingsin the city of Kuala Lumpur. Apart from the existing towers that we can see like Menara TM, Ilham Tower, The Exchange 106, Petronas Tower and etc, there are list of towers more to be built or already in progress in Kuala Lumpur such as Merdeka PNB118, Tradewinds Square Tower A, Fairmont Kuala Lumpur Tower, Oxley Tower 1 and few others, according to The Skyscraper Center.
For those who do not know, Skyscraper is a symbol of economic strength and global business attractions. In direct ways, it helps the country to attract or increase foreign direct investment (FDI) which would create more jobs opportunity, hence, will also help in reducing poverty. In case people are wondering, who actually paid for the building, the answer is the owner or the stakeholders of the building, unless it is a government building, then people can question about their tax money. Many may not realize this, but skyscrapers are build based on demand. Since many people are drawn to cities thanks to the jobs opportunities and modern services, skyscrapers also find its profits there, where great industries like finance, marketing, business services and high-tech are clustered together to produce their product.
However, people on social media have been very sceptical and critical on the continuousdevelopment of skyscraper in Kuala Lumpur for several reasons.
Here are the reasons:
- Stagnant wages
Those who live in Kuala Lumpur city are stronglyrelying on wages, as wages play significant role to determine their standard of living, which refers to the level of wealth, comfort, materials good and necessities. Bank Negara also had reported that Malaysian workers are still being underpaid than workers in benchmark economies and that Malaysia’s current wage productivity levels are misaligned. Since the existence of numbers of skyscrapers in Kuala Lumpur did not bring impact on the condition of stagnant wages for years, many people become pessimistic of the development.
- Income inequality
In city like Kuala Lumpur, the income gap between the T20 and both middle class and B40 is quite obvious. Khazanah Research Institute has reported that the income gap between T20 and both M40 and B40 is greatly widening since 2008 despite the reduction in Gini Coefficient, showing that Malaysia has been successfully reduce the income inequality generally. It was reported that from 1995 to 2016, the income gap between T20 and the M40 rose from RM6,000 to RM10,00, while the gap between T20 and B40 rose from RM8,000 to RM14,000.People now realized that in capitalist system, the economic success and profits made from skyscrapers will mainly tasted by those in top positions and those with influence.
- Urban poverty
Urban poverty is a serious issue that constantly need to be highlighted. The number of people “kais pagimakanpagi, kais petangmakanpetang” in Kuala Lumpur is still unsure, but there are many of them economically struggling for sure. Their live condition is beyond despair, as their income is only able to provide for basic necessities like food, water, rent and bills. As many more people are drawn into Kuala Lumpur thanks to the opportunities and attractions by the skyscrapers, these urban poverty groups of people are being pushed away and neglected automatically as the priority goes to those who paid more to live in the city. This is harsh but truth.
- Higher price of property
The cost of owning property in Kuala Lumpur is almost ridiculous that only filthy-rich people are able to own them. The main problem about the job opportunities provided by the skyscrapers development is that the cost to own or rent a house in Kuala Lumpur is too high. Even the cost of renting a room is high for entry level workers. Skyscrapers should be built in state like Perak, Pahang, Negeri Sembilan, Kelantan, Terengganu or other state that have lower price of property compared to Kuala Lumpur. Plus, it is time for other states to earn more income and be develop like Kuala Lumpur.
- Congested city and parking issue
Growing economy and population in Kuala Lumpur is causing KL to becomea congested city, in fact, KL has ranked as the fifth most traffic-congested place in Southeast Asia. The congestion issue in KL is very severe and will be getting worse in future that the citizens of KL have to suffer every day. To add up, with more number of car on the road, finding a parking would be another serious issue that the KL citizens have to endure.
- Stress level
According to TheEdgeProperty.com-Lafarge Happiness in the City Index 2017, those who live in Klang Valley city are the most stressful and unhappy people compared to those who live in Penang and Johor Bahru city. Although stress is a common trend especially for those living in a city, it is becoming a serious concern as too much stress caused by traffic congestion, extreme workload, high cost of living or lonesome can led to mental ill-ness. To relate stress level issue with the topic of skyscrapers is to highlight the potential phenomenon when city like KL is becoming overcrowded with people that are drawn by the job opportunities in skyscrapers.
To conclude, these are some of the reasons of why skyscrapers are not beneficial in Kuala Lumpur but are strongly beneficial in other cities in Malaysia. There’s no hatred against skyscrapers development as long as it continuously contribute to our economy and provide more jobs to our people, but the happiness and the comfortability of Kuala Lumpur’s citizens should also be a priority.
* This is the personal opinion of the writer and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail.
