SOMETHING OLD, SOMETHING BLUE

Last Thursday, while nibbling on Club Sandwiches at Renaissance's The Vogue, Mat Som told those present (Bloggers: Awang Goneng, Kak Teh, Puteri Kamaliah. Non-Bloggers: Pak Abu, Shamsuddin Jaafar, Kol. (B) Shafieq Ismail) that bloggers should be agitators for change. Although I personally think that bloggers should just highlight things like a highlighter and leave the opinion-making to the reader, there are times when agitation is necessary.
Take the case of the rows of pre-war buildings in Kuala Terengganu that the state government wanted to demolish. Read the blog here.

Apparently, the buildings were acquired by Lembaga Tabung Warisan Negeri Terengganu and the shopkeepers paid rent to carry on doing business in the building. To me, "warisan" means heritage. Things you pass on, intact, from generations to generations. I would like to believe that Lembaga Tabung Warisan Negeri Terengganu bought the old buildings to preserve them as heritage for the Terengganu people, present and future. Even after demolishing historical buildings like Mesjid Bukit Besar and Mesjid Chendering, it is still not too late for the state government to think about conservation. There are intrinsic values in old buildings which will never be replicated in vulgar modern malls.

I am not against progress if it means improving the life of Terengganu people. After all, that is what the government is for. Progress does not mean obliterating historical landmarks. Learn to work around these irreplaceable buildings. If other capitals in the world can do that, why can't Terengganu?

Read also Awang Goneng's piece here.

Labels: Heritage, Terengganu