Once Upon a Time in Botanical Gardens

Once, there were green fields, kissed by the sun..so the song by the Brothers Four goes.

Once, there was Botanical Gardens which was the pride and hallmark of botanical glory of Penang.

Today, it is in a shameful state and the state government's 'Cleaner, Greener, Healthier and Safer Penang' is a disgraceful tagline.

Botanical Gardens during more glorious days

What will Lim Guan Eng and MBPP have to say now? Instead of spending time demolishing signboards, they ought to monitor illegal hill development and clean up Botanical Gardens, apart from many other neglected areas.

This report tells more.

GEORGE TOWN: Penang’s famous Botanical Garden in the Waterfall area has been reduced to an unkempt and badly maintained site, Gerakan Penang has claimed.

Its women’s leader Hartini Tan blamed the Botanical Garden Department’s poor management for the sorry state of the city’s most popular green lung.

She pointed out that the Botanical Garden has been among the main tourist attractions for international and domestic tourists, particularly during school and public holidays.

“At least the Penang Government can ensure that this Penang pride was clean and well-maintained, said Tan.

She conceded that the Penang Government had been trying hard to promote tourism, with Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng travelling regularly to promote the state. “But what’s the point if our tourist spots are ill-managed and not cleaned regularly?” she asked.

“The state government must educate the people to take care of the garden. Cleaner, greener Penang cannot be just a slogan with some pictures on billboards. Please do your work,” she said.

She urged the state government and the garden’s management to buck up on the cleanliness, as well as improve the facilities.

She said it was embarrassing that the Botanical Garden’s Japanese Garden Section was dirty because the section was created several years ago as a symbol of the good relationship of the people of Penang with the people of Itabashi, a Japanese city.

“Today, this section sits in the middle of a dump site,” lamented Tan.

She said checks showed that the place of nature looked like an abandoned courtyard with unwanted furniture indiscriminately thrown everywhere, strewn plastic bags hanging on trees and uncollected rubbish at its main entrance.

“I wonder whether visitors and tourists would think they have actually come to a garbage dump site, instead of our beautiful botanical gardens,” said Tan.

She said the unsightly view was a shame for Penang, mocking the government’s own slogan of “Cleaner, Greener, Healthier Penang.”

Source: Free Malaysia Today