Tunglang cruised along Gurney Drive last Thursday and was disturbed by what he saw.
Writes tunglang:
It was a great morning driving along Gurney Drive to enjoy the clear blue sky and sea breeze of cosmopolitan Penang after much raining cats and dogs the last few days.
Taking in the sea view, I found my visual enjoyment disrupted. I was shocked by the unsightly ‘grey carpeting’ – the view of the mud – along our tourist attraction, Gurney Drive. With the campaign of Cleaner, Greener Penang ongoing, why is it that this unsightly environmental disaster persists?
Well, depending on what state of mind or which preferred point of view you look at this issue, one thing is certain – we have achieved the dubious status of ‘Coast-mud-politan’ Penang.
Pity the fisher folk who have to wade through the mud to get to their cari-makan boats. Happy are the mud-skippers who have finally found home sweet home in Muddy Gurney Drive of the rich and famous and slippery cleanliness obsessed!
By the way, cosmopolitan means a mix of cultures and people from different countries. Here it has taken on a new environmental meaning – a mix of beautiful and ugly landscapes.
So much for all those mud balls.
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A lot of things have happened to Penang Island since the 1970s. There was first KOMTAR, which was delayed in-between before completion and cost more than what it should have. Then, there was the Penang Bridge, which people thought a good idea, but turned out to increase traffic congestion on the Island and still is the cause of increasing traffic congestion. For me, who has been living around the Tanjung Tokong area and enjoyed the original beauty of the Tanjung Tokong – Gurney Drive area, what has happened in the past 30 – 40 years is nothing less than tragic.… Read more »
The “Green Parrot Cabaret” with Richard Hoon playing definitely is much better than Sunrise Towers…brings back fond memories but then I was only a kid then….haha!
“The planning permission for the project to a previous developer was given based on our 1996 zoning policy plan — Controlled Development and Planning Policy Plan. The land in question was previously gazetted as public housing. However, the project never took off and in 2010, Sunway bought the land and drew up a new plan on that plot,” Roslan said, adding that prior approval for the piece of land to the previous developer enabled Sunway to submit its proposal. After considering an existing approval for the converted land, the council granted planning permission in 2010 under the special category term… Read more »
No guideline for 20 years until June 2012. Special project is created by lgE. Of the 19 special projects only (it would seem) 4 projects were approved before by the previous state government, the rest approved by lgE administration.
What so stringent when it is up to the developers to decide by themselves?
Who is a big fat liar?
luckily ong eu soon do not stay in JB, otherwise he will have more housing issues to grumble about. A new condo in JB now will cost RM650 per sq ft., affordable only for those earning Singapore dollars.
No guidelines for 20 years Developers only required to exercise ‘stringent control’ over hill projects TUESDAY, JULY 10, 2012 – 12:14 by A. Sangeetha – Malay Mail Location: GEORGE TOWN WHILE Pakatan Rakyat and Barisan Nasional continue to play the blame game on which administration is responsible for approving controversial hillslope projects in the state, the root of the problem appears to stem from the lack of guidelines by the local authority. For 20 years, the guidelines set by the Penang Island Municipal Council for developers of hillslope projects only demanded that developers had to exercise stringent measures when developing… Read more »
The mudslinging on who approved hill slope development exceeding the 75m limit continue unabated! Ever wonder why? With the Coast-mud-politan, we have plenty of dirt to wash in the public. But don’t worry! There are serious effort to turn this Coast-mud-politan into a real cosmopolitan, the zoning plans for Gurney Drive, Bagan Jermal, Kelawei Road and Jalan Masjid Negeri have been amended to increase the plot ratio to 1:4. This guarantee that the developers can build taller and higher building where the mud will be out of reach. You will sure of prosperity with the land use of Jalan Bagan… Read more »
…recycling waste is a noble effort. Regurgitating discredited half baked accusations like your is NOT. Repeating a lie a hundred times doesn’t make it true.
Slow learner, aren’t you?
tunglang
instead of feeling sick over cosmopolitan development, you must seize the opportunity to increase your spending money with your talent like drawing or sketches.
with more richie folks (like the Arabs) coming to Penang, you can earn big bucks doing sketches for them easily RM50 per simple black n white sketch !
otherwise you shall continue to fantasize about gloomy modern penang while sipping kopi kow kow !
I already have my mission & vision in place, so don’t worry about my apparent gloom & doom expressions, which btw don’t constitute my entire personality. Am I not doing a social responsibility service by highlighting the dangerous, ugly & unsustainable development? Why the alarming bells ringing in thy ears? Besides, I also love to share Penang’s side of authentic heritage assets not in the view range of popular tourism of bling, bling plastic SingLand. Who knows what I may discover along the way? Anyway, don’t worry, be happy while the mud carpeting is still not rolled out to sea.… Read more »
tunglang can invest like in Samsung Note, do 5 minutes didital sketches using it, and print eg portrait sketch of rich tourist on the spot using portable printer and charge RM30 for a 5 minute work – the price even the or0-maestro cannot match ! another positive suggestion is for tunglang to do sketches of heritage penang. may be one day tunglang can be as popular as another penang-born personality Jimmy Choo. what you waiting for ? Contact your former mentor Kee Paik Chin if you cannot align along the present rocket team ??? Sometimes we readers prefer pleasant positive… Read more »
Alright brother!
More Si Pek Ho Chiak for salivating on to anilnetto digital space! But I won’t be promoting slippery cleanliness obsession as too SingLand & out of context for authentic experiential ‘living’ heritage. Not ‘plastic surgery’ heritage.
You know some of what I have in mind for heritage Penang.
Kopitiam loyar buroks with their narrow minded opinions thrive on this negativity. Whine and whine about “evil” banks, property developments, and so forth. Do they have any viable suggestions other than to ban/ revoke/ cancel? None. Zero. People who fail in life often remain stuck in this mindset. Even their posts are forever repetitive. Singapore is not perfect, but it IS a model for good planning and efficiency . Clean, well run and dynamic. A true example of how much a small nation can progress thru hard work, good governance, and long sighted planning. – but some trolls will fail… Read more »
Sweeping statement bear no iota of truth except his own personal vendetta of hate & silly assumption.
Prove us anything you blurb out.
I challenge you to come to Penang Speaker’s Square, Kay Boh?
Wait for you, anytime.
Btw, eat more weeds for your health & bad mouth!!! Oral Plus is no match to weeds in your distressed garden of PJ/SS2.
Goodness, old man.
The more excited you get , the more incoherent. Loyar burok … Hahah
Hey, please.read before posting. I can imagine you and your big mouth , ranting aimlessly , saliva and all.
Dn’t talk big when you can’t even match me here.
Go back to your hiding places.
What’s your choice today? Belum forest or behind Mommy’s skirt?
Now you show who you are – A Kay Boh Piao! (Chicken Head in every sense). Only talk rubbish & spew weeds at others behind PC anonymous, but no real courage to prove your wannabe existence to all anilnetto readers!!! Not even to contribute article worthwhile to read for goodness sake. Be a real gentleman. Not a distressed headmistress with ‘skirting around issues’ tendency. Come to Penang Speaker’s Square, the public venue. Come with your weed killer ‘Tho’ & big mouth full of foulish speeches & headmistress dictation. And do bring along your IC to prove what you claim you… Read more »
Here’s for your mood uplifting:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZD0Z0CwRDJw&w=400
Asian cultural icons stir-fried with Ang Moh dance beats.
one night in bangkok, advise do wear IT.
When the Beatles were the rage, the place where Straits Quay now stands was a sand bar. Slowly it build up and towards the 80’s there was actually a mangrove forests there comprising of mainly Avincinia spp (Api api), a pioneer mangrove species. Later on the Government started reclaimed the land and today after privatisation we have this piece of land abutting out to the sea. The mud that build up this land in the first place have no have to go, but further down to another bay and this time it around the Bagan Jermal -Gurney Drive end. I… Read more »
Well there are plans to turn a portion of it near the Gurney Drive roundabout into a mangrove reserve and the rest of the Gurney Drive sea front into a linear public park. But let’s see if it materialises.
But there are also plans for the ‘tunnel’ to start from around here as well, in which case there will be other environmental problems including traffic congestion.
Either way, keep an eye on this space.
If what Anil mentions happens I will be very happy. Turning the area into a mangrove park and the rest into a linear park is a great idea. Land will have to be reclaimed of course but at least it won’t be to build condos and shops. The Gardens by the Bay in Marina Bay and the East coast park in Sg are very good examples of huge linear parks. It will benefit all bcos everyone will be able to enjoy green space plus it will boost the appeal of the area. A win for the people, for the existing… Read more »
The E&O management told me some time ago they are planning to build the linear park and mangrove reserve.
I also heard from a state exco member about their plans for a linear park in the area.
But the tunnel project is a worry as it will lead to congestion in the area.
Nice work.
I’ve always been rather suspicious about the effectiveness of these mudballs. Some of the hotels in Batu Ferringhi used them to help clean up the sea. Doesn’t really work but the disaster that is BF is quite different to Gurney Drive. Mudballs seems to be more of a gimmick. Penang government sure has a lot of their plate.
I’m also very curious on how we can reverse this disaster….anyone?
Please don’t get mixed up the Mud balls are used to clean up streams & rivers not the sea. And it is not a gimmick, it really works.
Don’t blame the current govt. for the mud slab, it happend ages ago. This silting does not happened in 5 years.
Then leave the mud alone?
What excuse is that. An environmental crime still has to be solved regardless of who is sitting nicely in Komtar Tower.
Or waiting for another tsunami to wash away the mud like what Pontius Pilate did with his pair of clean hands!
What better solution than to wait & pray for Mother Nature to do the clean up:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FFpcDC3KHzA&w=400
Plus you will get free mud-bath & salt-wash for cars!
think positive, Penang tourism can organise WWE-like Mud-Wrestling at Gurney Beach.
Irt can be part of Heritage Festival 🙂
The mud may prove to be useful for spa treatment. Outdoor Spa can be a business in Penang?
First you have to filter out all the rubbish and plastic containers from the mud!