Sustainable Development and Worldviews

I introduced myself to Razali, who was taking a break at the beach after coming back from the sea. Razali, 51, is a fisherman at Penang south. He began working at the sea when he was 12. Razali told me that he had previously applied to work in the Penang South Reclamation (PSR) project but didn't get it. I asked him, why a fisherman like him, who has worked for 39 years in the sea, wanted to quit and work for PSR? Razali solemnly replied that there's no future as a coastal fisherman. Although there's no reclamation in the southern sea right now (PSR hasn't started), Razali said that the catch in the area has been declining over the years. "Hidup nelayan sekarang susah," he said. Razali wanted to switch to jobs with better prospect, that's why he applied to work for PSR. "Dapat kerja kat PSR bagus juga," said Razali. However, PSR doesn't have any more opening right now. There'll only be more jobs once the reclamation work begin. But Penang...

This is Nina from Teluk Kumbar, Penang. Young and intelligent, graduated with a degree in agricultural science. The job market was bad when she came out from university. Instead of a permanent position near home, she had to do contract work at Putrajaya, far from home. When her father was hospitalised, Nina had to leave her job to return to Penang, to be close to her family. Fortunately at that time, the Penang South Reclamation (PSR) project, launched by the Penang State Government, had job openings. Nina applied and was hired. This is her first permanent position. With better salary, Nina can now help to shoulder some of the financial burden of her family and have more savings. "Sekarang save a lot," she said. Nina told me that there are currently more than 800 job applications to work in PSR. Yes, 800! Unlike those rich spokepersons of Penang Forum, many people are actually looking for jobs. Previously, Nina objected against the PSR too. But after her own experience of wor...

I met a pair of father and son who work in the Penang South Reclamation (PSR) project. The father, Pakcik Ismail, had served in the military for 15 years before becoming a fisherman. The livelihood of a fisherman was tough – even for an ex-soldier. Income was unstable, catch was unpredictable. “Kalau tak pi laut, siapa nak bagi duit? Nasib kerja laut,” he said. Pakcik was a fisherman for almost 20 years, living off the mercy of the sea. Then he found his current job with PSR, and has never failed to receive his salary every month in the past 5 years. His son, Mat, began following him to the sea in his teens. Didn’t want to resign his life to the sea, Mat worked in various jobs and eventually became a driver. However, he lost that and became unemployed for six months. That was a dark period for him, his wife, and their two children. Mat struggled to provide for them. “Tak mampu bagi apa yang mereka mahu. Rasa pahit,” he said. Relatable to many breadwinners who recently lost their job du...

This morning I passed by the seawall upgrading site at Esplanade. I saw violent giant waves pounding unceasingly onto the new seawall (watch the video ). If left on its own, the old seawall would collapse sooner or later — dangerous to many visitors. The development of the new seawall, as I later discovered, began construction in 2019 by the Penang State Government. The project will strengthen the area's coastal defense, protecting the popular promenade for visitors. According to YB Jagdeep Singh Deo (State Exco for Local Government) the construction cost of the 570m seawall was RM12.2 million. I think this is a commendable initiative by the State Government for the good of the public. The seawall upgrade is expected to complete by the end of this year. After that, single Penangites can resume the annual Chap Goh Mei tradition of throwing mandarin oranges at the Esplanade, provided no more Covid-19.

Job opportunities don't drop from the sky. They are created through development, driven by progressive policy, financed by the supply and demand forces in the market. Recently, the Penang South Islands (PSI) project was reported to generate 15,000 new jobs from the construction work of the first island. [1] Although the reclamation hasn't started, I was told that more than 100 Penangites are now hired for the preparation work for PSI. Wanted to find out more, I met up with Abang Sam. Abang Sam was a full-time fisherman before his present employment for the PSI project. He shared with me his hard life as a fisherman – with little to no savings, no employees provident fund (KWSP), unstable income. Life was without financial security. "Pendapatan hanya lepas makan, hanya boleh hidup," he said. But that's not the worst for him. His most horrific experience as a fisherman was fishing in the open sea during thunderstorm. "Semasa hujan ribut, macam gadai nyawa....

Penang Forum members have been lobbying hard to cancel development projects that can generate thousands of new job opportunities in Penang. Their latest statement opposing the Penang South Reclamation (PSR), penned by Khoo Salma, is a disappointing piece, not only because it contains many misleading information but also of its disregard for the wellbeing of Penangites and the future of Penang.[1] What is misleading? Many, but I shall just point to the one with misleading impression that the State Government is not developing Seberang Perai or optimising mainland for industrial expansion. The impression is misleading because out of the 10 industrial parks developed by the State Government, 9 of them are located at Seberang Perai. For further expansion of industrial development, another 1,156 acres of new lots on the mainland were identified for industrial use on top of the initial 2,898 acres that have been allocated.[2] State Government is optimising the mainland for the state’s econom...

Three-time Pulitzer Prize winner Thomas Friedman recounted a story about gazelle and lion in his best-selling book, The World Is Flat : “Every morning in Africa, a gazelle wakes up. It knows it must run faster than the fastest lion or it will be killed. Every morning a lion wakes up. It knows it must outrun the slowest gazelle or it will starve to death. It doesn’t matter whether you are a lion or a gazelle: when the sun comes up, you’d better be running.” Friedman was writing in the early 2000s, describing the rising competitiveness in a globalising world. The inclusion of China into the World Trade Organization in 2001 has significantly reconfigured the global supply chain and redirected the flow of international investments. The global economic shift has severely affected Penang, with the number of multinational corporations reduced from 63 firms in 1994 to 23 by 2004, with employment plunged by 69 per cent.[1]  In 2001 alone, more than 12,000 high-tech jobs disappeared from Pen...

Responding to the statements from PAS and Penang Sustainable Natural Heritage Association (Lekas) regarding the Penang South Reclamation (PSR) project, as reported in Free Malaysia Today and The Vibes . Free Malaysia Today : "State PAS chief Muhammad Fauzi Yusuf said an appeal by fishermen against the Penang South Reclamation (PSR) had yet to be heard and hence, the state government should not arbitrarily announce that it would “start work” in May."[1] The Vibes : "The Penang Sustainable Natural Heritage Association (Lekas) is the latest group to urge the authorities to defer the Penang South Reclamation (PSR) project, pending an appeal by a group of fishermen."[2] These two groups have raised the same empty objections against PSR in the past, which is actually expected as Lekas’ chairman Zikrullah Ismail is one of PAS youth leaders in Penang.[3] It is clear that PAS is going all out to stop sustainable development in Penang, desiring the state to suffer economic d...