LETTERS: Flood mitigation and other municipal improvements need to be prioritised before Klang is declared a city.
Caretaker Selangor Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari had recently said that Klang would receive city status soon.
The statement has not been greeted with enthusiasm or interest by Klang residents, who have long coped with many municipal woes.
For example, the housing estate where I live, Taman Bijaya, is prone to flash floods, water logging and stagnant drains despite complaints to the member of parliament, state representative and councillor.
The Klang Municipal Council needs to be more proactive in handling complaints.
The possibility of floods is a threat to our lives and property, and mitigation or the elimination of floods should be the No. 1 priority of administrators and politicians.
It is hoped that the state election candidates in the Klang parliamentary constituency will take note of these problems.
Whether city status will make Klang better remains to be seen.
For a start, before conferment of city status, the council should upgrade Klang, focusing on cleanliness; better infrastructure, especially roads and drains; parking facilities; easing congestion; and taking better flood prevention measures.
Effective flood prevention measures are important and Klang's unsanitary conditions can be traced to poor drainage as well as rubbish clogging up drains and waterways.
Needless to say, flood prevention will be the most important issue to be considered when Klang attains city status.
Klang is also a royal township.
The new administrative status should be used as a catalyst for municipal and infrastructural improvements.
They should include large retention ponds; overcoming congestion; beautification; more parks with better facilities; redevelopment of dilapidated buildings; upgrading of municipal services and strict supervision of Syarikat KDEB Waste Management; overcoming littering and pollution; greater concern about the environment; and more staff to ensure better administration' and supervision of services.
There are many abandoned buildings in Klang and together with vacant, unkempt plots, they are an urban eyesore. Land values are bound to increase with city status.
The council should ensure that problems affecting residents can be overcome with more allocations from the federal and state governments.
Commercial activities and businesses can get a boost also from the new status.
Klang needs to be spruced up, and shops and buildings given a new coat of paint to mark the celebration.
MATHEWS JOSEPH
Klang, Selangor
The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of the New Straits Times