Post by tuamkc on Jun 24, 2015 8:45:30 GMT 8
Local Counsel - Keep KL safe
Posted on 22 June 2015 - 07:06pm
Last updated on 22 June 2015 - 07:11pm
Goh Ban Lee
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CITIES are homes to a majority of people. As such, urban safety is an important and critical issue.
According to EIU's 2015 Safe City Index, out of 50 cities chosen from 34 countries, the three safest cities in the world are from Asia. They are Tokyo, Singapore and Osaka. The rest of the 10 safest cities in the world are Stockholm, Amsterdam, Sydney, Zurich, Toronto, Melbourne and New York City.
Kuala Lumpur is not included in the 2015 EIU Safe City Index, but is included in a study on the safest and the most dangerous cities in the world. In a short article regarding the safest and most dangerous cities supported by a well-known company in the tourism industry, TripAdvisor, Kuala Lumpur is ranked the 10th most dangerous city in the world.
According to the company that produced the study, "Cities were judged on factors like friendliness, value and ease when it comes to getting around, among other criteria."
The rest of the 10 most dangerous cities in the world are Brussels (9th), Mumbai (8th), Cape Town (7th), Marrakech in Morocco (6th), Moscow (5th), Buenos Aires (4th), Sham el Sheikh, Egypt (3rd), Rio de Janeiro (2nd) and Punta Cana, Dominican Republic (1st).
Punta Cana is a coastal holiday resort in the Dominican Republic, the country that shares an island with Haiti in the Caribbean.
The study sponsored by TripAdvisor also included the 10 safest cities. They are Copenhagen (10th), Munich (9th), Seoul (8th), Dubai (7th), Stockholm (6th), Vienna (5th), Zurich (4th), Dubrovnik in Croatia (3rd), Singapore (2nd) and Tokyo (1st).
Europeans must be happy that six out of the 10 safest cities are from Europe. However, it should also be noted that some European cities have very agile pickpocket villains. An example is Barcelona in Spain.
Two Asian cities, namely Singapore and Tokyo, are the two safest cities in the world. There is much to learn about city management from these two places. Asian city mayors should learn from their counterparts in Tokyo and Singapore.
Local authority leaders should try to improve the safety of Malaysian towns and cities. Singapore is not only our neighbour, it is also largely occupied by the same ethnic groups like Malaysia. If the Singapore government can persuade its residents to obey cleanliness laws, it should also be possible for the mayors and presidents of the local councils in Malaysia to ensure that their cities are as clean and safe as Singapore.
Unfortunately, unlike the liveable city ranking studies conducted by EIU or Mercer, the safe city and most dangerous city ranking used by TripAdvisor did not make clear how the ranking was done, although it did state that its consultants did conduct about 75,000 surveys.
It is not known if the leaders in Kuala Lumpur City Hall and the elected Members of Parliament for Kuala Lumpur are aware of the city being judged as one of the 10 most dangerous cities.
Hopefully, DBKL officers will take action to ensure that Kuala Lumpur will be out of the list.
There is no need for Mayor Tan Sri Ahmad Phesal Talib and the DBKL officers to work harder to change the situation except to ensure that the municipal by-laws related to cleanliness are enforced.
It is useful to recall that Datuk Raja Nong Chik Raja Zainal Abidin, the former minister of urban well-being, housing and local government has thrown a challenge to DBKL to ensure that the city will be ranked one of the top 20 liveable cities in the world come 2020.
The target year is about five years away. Unless there is a drastic change in the behaviour of the residents of Kuala Lumpur and its visitors, the challenge of Datuk Raja Nong Chik will not be met.
But it must be noted that unlike many cities in Europe, local authorities in Malaysia do not have a police force. Ahmad Phesal will have to work closely with the police to ensure the city is very safe.
Datuk Dr Goh Ban Lee is interested in urban governance, housing and urban planning. Comments: letters@thesundaily.com
Posted on 22 June 2015 - 07:06pm
Last updated on 22 June 2015 - 07:11pm
Goh Ban Lee
CITIES are homes to a majority of people. As such, urban safety is an important and critical issue.
According to EIU's 2015 Safe City Index, out of 50 cities chosen from 34 countries, the three safest cities in the world are from Asia. They are Tokyo, Singapore and Osaka. The rest of the 10 safest cities in the world are Stockholm, Amsterdam, Sydney, Zurich, Toronto, Melbourne and New York City.
Kuala Lumpur is not included in the 2015 EIU Safe City Index, but is included in a study on the safest and the most dangerous cities in the world. In a short article regarding the safest and most dangerous cities supported by a well-known company in the tourism industry, TripAdvisor, Kuala Lumpur is ranked the 10th most dangerous city in the world.
According to the company that produced the study, "Cities were judged on factors like friendliness, value and ease when it comes to getting around, among other criteria."
The rest of the 10 most dangerous cities in the world are Brussels (9th), Mumbai (8th), Cape Town (7th), Marrakech in Morocco (6th), Moscow (5th), Buenos Aires (4th), Sham el Sheikh, Egypt (3rd), Rio de Janeiro (2nd) and Punta Cana, Dominican Republic (1st).
Punta Cana is a coastal holiday resort in the Dominican Republic, the country that shares an island with Haiti in the Caribbean.
The study sponsored by TripAdvisor also included the 10 safest cities. They are Copenhagen (10th), Munich (9th), Seoul (8th), Dubai (7th), Stockholm (6th), Vienna (5th), Zurich (4th), Dubrovnik in Croatia (3rd), Singapore (2nd) and Tokyo (1st).
Europeans must be happy that six out of the 10 safest cities are from Europe. However, it should also be noted that some European cities have very agile pickpocket villains. An example is Barcelona in Spain.
Two Asian cities, namely Singapore and Tokyo, are the two safest cities in the world. There is much to learn about city management from these two places. Asian city mayors should learn from their counterparts in Tokyo and Singapore.
Local authority leaders should try to improve the safety of Malaysian towns and cities. Singapore is not only our neighbour, it is also largely occupied by the same ethnic groups like Malaysia. If the Singapore government can persuade its residents to obey cleanliness laws, it should also be possible for the mayors and presidents of the local councils in Malaysia to ensure that their cities are as clean and safe as Singapore.
Unfortunately, unlike the liveable city ranking studies conducted by EIU or Mercer, the safe city and most dangerous city ranking used by TripAdvisor did not make clear how the ranking was done, although it did state that its consultants did conduct about 75,000 surveys.
It is not known if the leaders in Kuala Lumpur City Hall and the elected Members of Parliament for Kuala Lumpur are aware of the city being judged as one of the 10 most dangerous cities.
Hopefully, DBKL officers will take action to ensure that Kuala Lumpur will be out of the list.
There is no need for Mayor Tan Sri Ahmad Phesal Talib and the DBKL officers to work harder to change the situation except to ensure that the municipal by-laws related to cleanliness are enforced.
It is useful to recall that Datuk Raja Nong Chik Raja Zainal Abidin, the former minister of urban well-being, housing and local government has thrown a challenge to DBKL to ensure that the city will be ranked one of the top 20 liveable cities in the world come 2020.
The target year is about five years away. Unless there is a drastic change in the behaviour of the residents of Kuala Lumpur and its visitors, the challenge of Datuk Raja Nong Chik will not be met.
But it must be noted that unlike many cities in Europe, local authorities in Malaysia do not have a police force. Ahmad Phesal will have to work closely with the police to ensure the city is very safe.
Datuk Dr Goh Ban Lee is interested in urban governance, housing and urban planning. Comments: letters@thesundaily.com