KUALA LUMPUR – The controversial Petaling Jaya Dispersal (PJD) Link highway received much ire from the district’s locals for the alleged lack of purpose behind its development.
The frustration was amplified after attendees of focus group discussions (FGD) conducted by the developers, PJD Link (M), considered the consultations redundant, as no specific details or progress of the large development project were disclosed.
Taking matters into their own hands, the residents created their own independent survey to obtain a more balanced perspective on PJ residents’ and frequenters’ opinions on the PJD Link.
Speaking to The Vibes, some of the residents said that their qualms may lead to incumbent state authorities losing their votes in the upcoming elections.
Chan Kok Hoe, who lives near Damansara 3, opined that PJ residents must stand their ground against the PJD Link highway, stressing that the state government should not take advantage of its long tenure.
(It’s not certain) whether they (Selangor government) are taking advantage of the people, thinking they can push for whatever they want because they are under Pakatan Harapan,” he said.
“Personally, I think we should send a strong message: that the people cannot be taken for granted, and that there is no such thing as ‘once in power, we will love you regardless’.”
Chan said the PJD Link highway is a mere rebranding exercise from its predecessor, the scrapped Kinrara-Damansara Expressway (Kidex) project.
Following the developer’s persistence in conducting FGDs last month, he deduced that the developer is confident the project will receive the green light from the state government.
Chan urged the state government to refrain from “playing around” when it was decided that such projects would be objected to.
The heads of the governments of Selangor, Negri Sembilan, Penang, Kedah, Kelantan, and Terengganu had recently agreed to consider dissolving their respective state assemblies in the last two weeks of June.
‘Is the S’gor govt contradicting itself?’
Meanwhile, Five Stones resident Raymond Chan said whether the current administration stays in power for the next term depends on its credibility.
Raymond was referring to a joint statement by Selangor Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari, DAP deputy chairman Gobind Singh Deo and Selangor exco Izham Hashim on September 3, 2021, saying that the state’s executive meeting agreed to reject any effort to revive the Kidex highway project, or any similar development.
Therefore, Raymond remarked that proceeding with the PJD Link project is an indication that the state government is contradicting itself.
At the same time, he revealed that the residents have written to both the developer and the consultant agency to provide more details and information regarding the PJD Link project.
‘Why use economic growth as excuse in mature city?’
Wong Mei Ching, who lives in The Hub, shared similar opinions, and slammed the FGDs for not asking residents pertinent questions for feedback.
She added that the FGD attendees unanimously disapproved of the project being built in a mature city that is already congested.
“They (developers) cite economic growth as part of the highway’s benefit, but that’s it. You’re telling me that just because of a highway, you get growth? It’s too simplistic,” she said.
There is also the house-to-house canvassing. We do not know what information is being shared, and people will respond in a matter of what is shared with them. So, we do not know how systematically it is being done.”
Wong said the unknowns only make it more worrying for the residents, as the fragments of the disclosed information are insufficient.
Dominic Wong, who is a volunteer with the “Say No to PJD Link” group, said the lack of information is equivalent to “staring down into a black hole”.
He also brought up how Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim had announced that no projects will proceed without a tender process, adding that projects of PJD Link’s scale will require one.
Dominic is hopeful that the independent survey by the residents could give a more holistic understanding of people’s opinions on the development project. – The Vibes, February 28, 2023
