LETTER | The EIA on PIL1 states that the multibillion ringgit Penang "superhighway" passing through hill tunnels and across recreational and residential places will reach a maximum carrying capacity five to seven years after its completion.

Considering that the PIL1 will only be "good" for such a short time, spending about RM7 billion on such short-term "benefit" is not a sensible economic thing let alone a lasting solution to Penang's traffic congestion problem. In fact, it will create more private vehicle traffic and further congestion on the island.

Then why is the government hellbent on ramming this project through?

It seems to get this project going is absolutely necessary for the Penang government and the prize is the reclamation of the three islands in the south. If the PIL1 does not take off, there is no need for this huge reclamation project as the excuse is that money from the reclamation is needed for the PIL1 and other projects like the LRT. So the PIL1 is like a red herring.

"Development" based on the permanent destruction of the natural environment is not a sustainable development as claimed. When the PIL1 gets choked, more roads will be needed.

What is the craze to reclaim 1,698ha driven by? Firstly there is ego. Politicians have to "show" and leave a legacy behind, never mind that some of the politicians' legacies have ended up as white elephants. They have to show their power to get things done. They want to make people feel "high" (drugged) on "development" to earn their votes at the next election.

Then, in this case, there is a burning desire to compete. The Penang government is trying to compete with and outdo Singapore's Marina Bay and other such waterfront areas. Why this desire to compete?

If the Penang government thinks that tourists will be attracted to see the man-made tunnels and the majestic concrete jungle on the three reclaimed islands, they must be in Dreamland. 

Tourists are running away from concrete jungles in their homelands to enjoy some quiet and peace close to nature and will look for other destinations. It should, therefore, make more sense to preserve the natural environment of Penang for which it has been well known as the Pearl of the Orient rather than to mutilate it.

Obviously, there is big money to be made from the reclamation (if it gets completed) but who is going to make all that money? Definitely not the man in the street in Penang. The few rich will be made richer. What about the majority who are having to tighten their belts to make ends meet? Whose needs is the government really looking after?

With nine out of ten people in society being of the unthinking type, it is very easy for politicians to condition them to believe that as the "people's elected representatives" that whatever they do is good for them. 

So the voice of the ten percent thinking people is buried under the weight of the votes of the other ninety percent which politicians cite as their "mandate" or empowerment to do what they perceive to be "the best".

Penangites who have blind faith in the government should wake up and reflect on what Ben Carson once said: "We've been conditioned to think that only politicians can solve our problems. But at some point, maybe we will wake up and recognise that it was politicians who created our problems."