By Adnan Jahaya
KANGAR: “Perlis tables a budget deficit every year, but who says it has no “wang” (money)?”
That is the running joke among Perlis people, particularly those well-aware of the financial troubles of the low-revenue state.
Perlis is facing a projected deficit of RM69.8 million as reported in the 2019 state budget tabled by its Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Azlan Man late last year.
The deficit is a 3.04 per cent drop from RM71.99 million in 2018.
Plenty of ‘Wang’
As someone born and raised in the northernmost state of Malaysia, this writer has heard of the joke about Perlis having “wang” since the 1980s.
It was a word play on the number of locations in the 810-sq km state which name begins with “wang”.
Aside from Wang Kelian that was once famous for its market near the Thai border, Perlis is also home to numerous villages which name starts with “Wang”.
Among it are Wang Besar, Wang Ulu and Wang Belimbing. There are also housing areas with Wang in the name, such as Taman Seri Wang.
Several popular hillsites in Perlis are named Wang Gunung, Wang Asar and Wang Mu.
In the outskirts of Kangar, there is Wang Kemik or Wang Temik, located on Bukit Besi Hangit. It used to be where people in the state would go to wind down or collect firewood and bamboo.
This writer himself was raised in a region called Wang Bintong and often prayed for economic prosperity in these areas as many of them were rife with poverty.
Revamp Wang Kelian
Perlis has a population of around 280,000 people and should look at turning its “Wang” locations into areas that truly live up to its name by generating income for the state.
Wang Kelian, for example, used to attract thousands of tourists when its border market or Nat Wang Kelian was opened not too long ago.
The 100-year-old border village was once known to be associated with the Malaysian folklore of Awang Kenit as well as a honeybee producing area.
Wang Kelian used to be free flow zone. Since 1993, people from Thailand and Malaysia were allowed to move freely between Wang Prachan (Thailand) and Wang Kelian for shopping without the need to produce travel documents.
However, the shopping haven turned into a ghost town after Malaysian authorities decided to suspend the free flow zone in April 2015 following the discovery of mass graves of illegal immigrants trafficked here by syndicates which brought them across the border.
Today, tourists are only in the area because of the immigration post in Wang Kelian. They would thereafter make their way to Wang Prachan to shop or head to the Satun province in Thailand. The town has become so quiet that even the extremely shy stump-tailed macaques are comfortable enough to roam the area.
Traders are calling for the return of the free flow zone in Wang Kelian as it was a source of lucrative income for the people, as well as the state.
The state government has previously asked that federal government to reinstate the free flow zone but to date, the suspension is still in effect.
Wang Kelian, located within the Perlis State Park, is also known for the Wang Burma cave, a major attraction for cave explorers.
A Challenge For Azlan
When tabling the state budget last year, Azlan said that the size of the deficit could be reduced if there were more income-generating activities in the state.
This has become the biggest challenge for Perlis, which for the first time in its history has become an opposition state and is perhaps starting to feel the pressure to improve its economic status.
The federal government, however, has granted the state an allocation for development activities in the last budget.
Perlis is planning to use its 2019 state budget of RM268.73 million to implement six previously shelved high-impact projects, which are expected to drive its economy. – Bernama
(This commentary expresses the personal views of the writer and does not necessarily reflect Bernama’s stand on the matter.)
