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Locals like Abdullah have grown cynical over multi-million ringgit projects like the Crystal Mosque, and even the town's hosting of the prestigious Monsoon Cup sailing competition, pointing out that there has been little direct benefit. By Debra Chong, The Malaysian Insider
Abdullah Muda, a famed boat-maker on Pulau Duyong where a sailing stadium has been built for the Monsoon Cup, says he has not built a sailing boat since 1997. "Now I make only these gondolas," the craftsman told The Malaysian Insider, pointing to the 30-footer passenger boats locals call “bot penambang”. "Many foreigners have come to visit my workshop since the Monsoon Cup. But none have ordered any sailing boats from me." Yesterday, the Deputy Prime Minister joined a large mission of Barisan Nasional leaders in town for the current by-election campaign, and they kept up a steady volley of words against Pakatan Rakyat on the issue of hudud. But hudud, the strict Islamic code which prescribes amputation, stoning and whipping as punishment for criminal offences, appears to have less traction on the campaign trail than bread and butter issues. Locals like Abdullah have grown cynical over multi-million ringgit projects like the Crystal Mosque, and even the town's hosting of the prestigious Monsoon Cup sailing competition, pointing out that there has been little direct benefit. Zaidi Mat Harun, 27, says it is hard to earn a living in the state. “Good jobs are hard to come by, and good salaries harder still.” The fruit seller earns a paltry RM1,000 to RM2,000 a month which, he says, barely covers his living expenses as the prices of goods continue to rise. A restaurant owner told The Malaysian Insider that few locals stepped into restaurants. "They think the food served in a restaurant is very expensive. They prefer to eat at the warungs and open-air places when they bother eating out," she said, adding that most just ate at home because they could not afford it. An upmarket local hotel in town charges RM600 a table for weddings, which pales in comparison to the going rate on the west coast of the peninsula, which usually crosses the RM1,000 mark. However, the price of a meal for two in a Terengganu coffeeshop in touristy Chinatown is comparable to hawker prices in Kuala Lumpur. One small plate of stir-fried mixed vegetables, two thin fillets of red snapper steamed with ginger, rice, a glass of iced tea, and a can of cola cost RM32. Even accommodation in Kuala Terengganu is high. A fully-furnished, four-bedroom house in Cendering, bordering Marang district and marketed as a "homestay", costs RM600 a night. A chalet owner told The Malaysian Insider that it was the normal market rate and not hiked up for the by-election. There are not enough hotels and inns to accommodate visitors and the owners know it. But the close race in the by-election has prompted an intense battle for the Chinese swing vote, and the BN campaign has been trying to drive a wedge between PR partners, the Islamist Pas and the secular DAP, over the hudud issue. DAP has objected strongly to Pas's support for hudud, and BN is hoping to damage PR's credibility and win the vote of the Chinese, who make up 11 per cent of the electorate. Some Chinese leaders have come out in support of the BN call to reject the Pas candidate, Abdul Wahid Endut, over this matter. "We don't want hudud," Foo Chih Wan told reporters after a closed-door dialogue-cum-dinner with Datuk Seri Najib Razak at the Primula Beach Resort last night. The president of the state Chinese Assembly Hall did not explain the reasons behind the rejection. But not all Terengganu Chinese share his sentiments. Several told The Malaysian Insider they are not rejecting hudud as they feel it does not concern the non-Muslims. "What is the big deal about hudud? Its Islamic criminal laws are only for Muslims. We're not Muslims. It doesn't concern us," one retiree said at a PR-organised ceramah a few nights ago. He was puzzled why the BN kept harping on a non-issue. "The Chinese and the Malays don't have problems with each other. We're all friends here," he added, upset that some parties saw racial problems within the local community when none existed. Another local Chinese businessman suggested that the hudud issue was created as a smokescreen to detract from the real issues at hand. “It is all about the money,” said the 54-year-old, who asked not to be named. He claimed that the grassroots Chinese community is increasingly dissatisfied with the leadership, especially from MCA. "They are more interested in getting projects for their cronies than taking care of the people's welfare," he said bitterly. He said the local community is worried sick about bread and butter issues, such as earning a living in a slowing global economy. Terengganu is an oil-producing state, but the money from the oil royalties has not reached them, he claimed. Giving an example, he explained that the Chinese poor were also entitled to receive the "wang ehsan" or the special goodwill allowance from the state coffers.
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