RECAP : KL Or Selangor

This letter was published in Malaysiakini.com on 1st march 2001. Also Published under the title 'Much ado over 'correct' home address' in the Star daily on 5th March 2001. Also published in the Sun Newspaper at around the same time with similar headings.

KL or Selangor?

I live in Selayang. However, my official home address and post code says 68100, Batu Caves, Selangor. People who see the address immediately have an impression that I live somewhere near Batu Caves, which is not true. The buses that go to Batu Caves never stop anywhere near my home.

There is more to add to this confusion. The local authority for the area is Majlis Perbandaran Selayang (MPS) yet I do not know the existence of any town called Bandar Selayang although there are areas such as Selayang Bahru, Selayang Jaya and Bandar Baru Selayang which are also within the district of Batu Caves.

To my understanding, Batu Caves and Rawang also fall under the jurisdiction of MPS. So rightly, the whole district under the jurisdiction of MPS should be called Daerah Selayang with its own postcode as opposed to the present situation with different districts such as Batu Caves and Rawang and different post codes for them.

To further confuse the people in my area, we pay our quit rent to Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur (DBKL). Our rubbish and waste are collected by Alam Flora who I suppose was assigned by DBKL.

I do remember when I purchased the property years ago, the land area stated in the sale and purchase agreement (S&P) is the Batu district, which is in Kuala Lumpur. The whole S&P transaction involved authorities in Kuala Lumpur and not Selangor. This is why I acknowledge Kuala Lumpur as the place I live in.

Our water supply comes from a dam within the district in Selangor while the electricity supply originates from Selayang. The police patrol cars in the neighbourhood are from Balai Polis Jinjang and sometimes Balai Polis Selayang.

I remember subscribing fixed line telephone services from Telekom Malaysia in Kepong. Kepong! Now that is further confusing.

And the wholesale market located in the area, the biggest in Klang Valley, calls itself Pasar Borong Besar Selayang when it should have been called Pasar Borong Besar Batu Caves since the address falls within the district of Batu Caves. The signage directing traffic into the wholesale market states 'Pasar Borong Kuala Lumpur'. So which is correct?

The signage indicating the existence of a Rukun Tetangga (neigbourhood watch) Unit in our area indicates that the unit is under the jurisdiction of Kawasan Bandar Sentul while another signage just next to it indicates a PAS ( Parti Islam Se-Malaysia) branch under Batu district, Kuala Lumpur.

So can anyone from the authorities tell us exactly where we live and also explain why those inconsistent signages and addresses were approved?

The list actually goes on to further add to the confusion. I will not be surprised if a similar situation is prevalent in other parts of the country. I hope the relevant authorities will take note of this and make the effort to streamline this problem of district and jurisdiction to ease the confusion among the residents and visitors to a particular area or district.

K Balan Kuala Lumpur

Recap : A years later, The National Registration department changed the address of my daughter birth certificate to 68100, Kuala Lumpur and no longer Batu Caves, which means we are, at least officially in Kuala Lumpur. My entire family's Identification Card address had since been changed to 68100, Kuala Lumpur. Now, the postal office would be confused as Batu Caves still carry 68100 as their post code as well. Oh, what an improvement made over 7 years.

I have yet to find where is Bandar Selayang! Nothing else changed and no one, except me, seems to bother or complain. So, I presume that the authorities are not going to do anything, just to please an ordinary resident like me.