Taklimat Draf Rancangan Tempatan MPAJ

Peter Tan being carried up two steps at the Dewan MPAJ Pandan Indah
Peter Tan being carried up two steps at the Dewan MPAJ Pandan Indah.

MPAJ organised a briefing on the Local Draft Plan for residents of the Teratai state constituency. It was held at the Dewan MPAJ at Pandan Indah. This local draft plan was for the development of the Ampang Jaya municipality for the next ten years. ADUN for Teratai Jenice Lee had informed me about this briefing. My main interest in this matter is to see if accessible facilities are included in the draft.

MPAJ Town Planner Awang Mustapha speaking on the Local Draft Plan
MPAJ Town Planner Awang Mustapha speaking on the Local Draft Plan.

The first inkling that it was not going to be plain sailing was when I discovered that the Dewan MPAJ did not have an access ramp into the hall. There were only steps and I had to be carried up together with my wheelchair. MPAJ will get to hear from me real soon regarding this matter. There is no reason whatsoever not to provide access in compliance with the Uniform Building By Law 34 when MPAJ itself is the authority enforcing this on all public buildings.

ADUN for Teratai Jenice Lee and MPAJ Councillors of the Teratai state constituency at the briefing
ADUN for Teratai Jenice Lee and MPAJ Councillors of the Teratai state constituency at the briefing.

When the forum was opened to the floor after the briefing by MPAJ Town Planner Awang Mustapha, I asked if the local draft plan includes provision of accessible facilities. It came as a shock to me that there were none according to Awang although such facilities were included in the guidelines for the draft. He promised to take this matter into account.

ADUN for Teratai Jenice Lee asking for clarification on some points at the Local Draft Plan briefing
ADUN for Teratai Jenice Lee asking for clarification on some points at the Local Draft Plan briefing

I was even more displeased when Councillor Chan Su San informed the floor that she did emphasise that accessible facilities should be included in the local draft plan during council meetings on the matter. I thought that MPAJ have understood that the municipality barely have accessible facilities and that after the seminar and dialogue with disabled people and the announcement by the Yang Di Pertua at the disability awareness training, such issues whould have been given more attention. Unfortunately, I was mistaken. This oversight is prevalent in local governments all over Malaysia. It is all talk without substance.

Peter Tan asking about the accessible facilities in the Local Draft Plan
Peter Tan asking about the accessible facilities in the Local Draft Plan.

It is very disappointing that a plan as important as this, even though at the draft stages, excludes the needs of disabled people, especially after all the advocacy activities we have initiated with MPAJ. I hope there will be more ADUNs like Jenice Lee and councillors in MPAJ like Chan Su Sann who understood the importance of such facilities and speak out on behalf of disabled people who do not have a representation in the MPAJ.

Author: Peter Tan

Peter Gabriel Tan. Penangite residing in the Klang Valley. Blissfully married to Wuan. A LaSallian through and through. Slave to three cats. Wheelchair user since 1984. End-stage renal disease since 2017. Principal Facilitator at Peter Tan Training specialising in Disability Equality Training. Former columnist of Breaking Barriers with The Borneo Post. This blog chronicles my life, thoughts and opinions. Connect with me on Twitter and Facebook.

4 thoughts on “Taklimat Draf Rancangan Tempatan MPAJ”

  1. RT is an important statutory plan and it should consider about the needs of PWD. I really hope barrier free environment in Malaysia can become reality and not just a slogan.

    Peter:
    I hope so too. ๐Ÿ™‚

  2. Hello Peter.
    I happened across your page and website and was intrigued by your experiences. Finding out your condition, saddened, but at the same time exalted me in that you’ve triumphed over odds that any other person, I feel, would find difficulty coming to terms with.

    I’m an ex-Penangite (CLS and Xaverian); been O/S most of my adult life. I always compare food from around the globe with Penang because it is the litmus test of flavour, piquancy and variety! But, because I’m not in Penang as often as I’d like, (lived in NZ, Australia, UK, Spain) I make Penang food at home.

    Although it’s a bit difficult when a massive brain haemorrhage (AVM) robs you the use of your r/hand; in 1995 this happened to me at the tender age of 34, leaving my right hand side paralysed and relying on a wheelchair and assistance for a good 3 or 4 years. At that time, after the emergency post-op, I couldn’t read, write, walk or talk, and my short-term memory got badly hit. I can walk unaided with a leg brace now, but my right arm/hand is still non-functional. I had to learn how to speak again, write with my left-hand (I was a right-hander before my stroke). The memory has improved although there is still the occasional lapse. I’m here today to tell the tale because I was brought up to persevere no matter what; try hard and try again. It stood me in good stead during my darkest hours.

    “…your living is determined not so much by what life brings to you as by the attitude you bring to life; not so much by what happens to you as by the way your mind looks at what happens.รขโ‚ฌย by Khalil Gibran

    I write on occasions for Able Magazine, but I figure that very few places around the world do take seriously the plight of many wheelchair users… ramps, toilets, changing rooms, even travel (& air travel) and accessible facilities on holidays… so simple concessions to those that have not been dealt with that mishap, but very real and a major concern to the disabled community. Things are changing for the better, but slowly; more slowly in some parts of the world perhaps than others. In Spain, there is a national lottery, the ONCE, which is peopled by disabled persons, “..ONCE employs over 23000 registered disabled people to run its lottery..” .. most of the beaches have disabled access; many musuems have ramps, lifts, disabled toilets; some buses have the handicapped sign displayed so you can get wheelchairs up them.

    I was fortunate enough to have an interview with ABLE Magazine, the Disability Lifestyle Magazine in the UK this year.
    – read about my ongoing recovery from stroke report in the Foreword topic of Inspiration section. The link is:
    http://www.vacation-ideas-spain.com/stroke-rehabilitation.html#tictoc

    I was in a wheelchair, but now I’m walking again, albeit at a much slower pace than before. And have written travelogue-cum-cookbooks, aptly named: TRAVELS with a One-Handed Cook. All the recipes were cooked by me, and photographed by my husband at our home here in Spain. To read further, it’s under INSPIRATION, COOKBOOK:
    http://www.vacation-ideas-spain.com/cookbook.html

    I’ve also dipped my fingers in: writing childrens novels, doing silk art, making flower pomanders…. all with only one-hand, as my right hand and arm is still paralysed thanks to the stroke. A lot is possible with the right mindset, and a will to make it happen.

    I applaud you and all the people who have made a life mission to see some change for the better.
    You can write to me if you wish on the address below.

    Warmest Regards,

    Jacqui Hynd
    jacqui@vacation-ideas-spain.

    Peter:
    That was a very long comment. Thanks. ๐Ÿ™‚

  3. I wish they put ramps on the buildings for easier access. Do they include this design on newer buildings?

    Peter:
    Newer buildings mostly have ramps but they are not always of the correct gradient.

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