Authorities patch potholed road after residents plant oil palm saplings
Tired of a pothole-ridden road, a group of villagers in Tanah Merah, Kelantan, found a genius way of getting the authorities to act fast to address the problem - by planting oil palm saplings on the road.
According to a 50-something resident who only wanted to be known as Din, they were forced to resort to doing so to attract the authorities attention.
"The badly tarred road issue has been going on for some time, and previously, repairs were only made by patching the holes.
"But the solution didn't really work, and the problem kept recurring. When the problem worsened, we decided to make it viral on social media," he told Malaysiakini.
According to Din, the locals count on better roads as the stretch is often used as an alternative by commuters travelling from Tanah Merah to Jeli, especially during the festive season.
"So, we thought it was only fair for the road to be upgraded and maintained better in the future."
A check by Malaysiakini showed that the road has been tarred by Roadcare (M) Sdn Bhd, soon after the incident went viral.
Jeli MP Zahari Kechik said his office called the Public Works Department after coming across the issue, and road maintenance contractors immediately fixed the road.
"As the elected representative of this area, I will ensure that road upgrading works here are expedited for the sake of the people," Zahari said.
On paper, Roadcare is supposed to be a reputable road maintenance contractor with operations in a number of countries.
ReplyDeleteIn practice, the actual work has been sliced and diced to numerous Bumi crony contractors who have really bad attitude ( what you get when contracts are won by Cables and impossible to be sacked).
"As the elected representative of this area, I will ensure that road upgrading works here are expedited for the sake of the people," Zahari said."
ReplyDeleteComment : this is the kind of MP people like Din voted into parliament.