Press Statement By Julian Tan:
I want to urge Padawan municipal council and its chairman Lo Khere Chiang to urgently look into the deplorable conditions faced by business operators at Kota Sentosa Industry Park.
I visited the site upon received complaints from the public. Potholes and bad roads condition are everywhere. The situation worsens during a downpour as rainwater covers the roads and potholes, making it more dangerous to road users. The drainage system also long overdue for maintenance; most of it now is filled with bushes grow inside the drainage and forms stagnant pools that provide breeding sites for disease vectors. The clogged drainage also causes flash floods frequently.
The most urgent of all is the overgrown bushes obscuring the view of incoming traffic from the main road (Jalan Kuching-Bau). The lower ground and inclined junction linking the main road, further worsening the field of view. It is unthinkable that people there must face such dangerous conditions daily.
What even more shocking is the lack of high-speed ground internet connectivity. It is an ongoing issue for years. It is a shame that while we are talking about moving into Industry 4.0 (IR 4.0) and the Internet of Things (IOT), our ‘Industry-park’ comes with ‘no-internet ready’. With the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, connectivity became an essential element not just for business survivability but an integral part of our life. As educational institutions now move to online learning, I was told that those with family members who are still attending such institutions have no choice but to ‘move outside’ of the Industrial Park to depends on a more stable wireless internet connection. It is also not uncommon to send an urgent business corresponding that needs a stable internet connection via this way. What an irony.
Such a condition does not serve the purpose of having an industry park, which is meant to become a catalyst for local economic growth. To a certain extent, to attract manufacturing Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), this is not the condition we would like to present to our international client.
A large amount of skill and effort is required to make an industrial park attractive and generate the economic benefits we envision. First, the quality of road built must handle the industrial level type of heavy loading vehicles else it will not last long. Drainage and the surrounding area must periodically maintain and clean. Security, high-speed internet connectivity, and the list goes on.
Having its name as ‘Industry-park’ will not serve its ultimate purpose of generating the economy. It must develop proper implementation and continuous commitment to becoming a thriving, healthy ecosystem that will attract manufacturers and FDI.
3.11.2020
Julian Tan
Special Assistant to YB Chong Chieng Jen.
