This time MONTH NUMBER 11!

At a time when the world economy is still uncertain and amid rising prices, I as a Malaysian have questioned the necessity for the RM2.5 billion to RM3 billion tower project after Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak announced the project in his budget speech recently. Construction work on the 100-storey Warisan Merdeka Tower will kick off next year. Touted to be the country’s tallest when it is completed in 2015, it will have a gross floor space of 3 million sq ft and 2.2 million sq ft of net floor space. The 5-star green building will be the beacon to create more excitement and to attract more interest to the whole development. This will be followed by two subsequent phases comprising a shopping complex and condominium. The whole development, to be undertaken over a 10 year period, will cost RM5 billion.

The question is, do we really really need another skyscraper in the city? Did the government and the developer (Permodalan Nasional Bhd) take into consideration the impact on the environment (the tower will be built on a 19-acre land adjacent to Stadium Merdeka & Stadium Negara, it's already compact & congested), the impact to the social system, the commercial development which will cause an oversupply of office space in the city & the speculation of higher office rental, the worsening of the already heavy traffic situation and the suitability of the site?

Isn’t it better to put the money elsewhere? That truly benefits everyone from all walks of life. Like building more schools, suraus, temples, churches, fixing the local playgrounds, more community centers, higher interest rates for EPF, no incomes taxes, re-painting the old government-owned apartments & flats, repair the lifts, building more government clinics, availability of more scholarships, feeding the poor, free baby milk powder & diapers, poverty elimination programs, fixed the pothholes so we can have better roads, subsidize for first-time home buyers, helping the Orang Aslis, free toll etc. Another skyscraper is really unnecessary. Whether this project is being funded from the public funding or from the private equity, I still think it's a waste of money.

Malaysia – I don’t think we are going to go anywhere, anytime soon.