Barely a week since the 2nd phase of the Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) Sungai Buloh-Kajang (SBK) Line opened, vandalism is already happening.
Mass Rapid Transit Corporation (MRT Corp) Strategic Communications and Stakeholder Relations director Datuk Najmuddin Abdullah said he went around to inspect several MRT stations over the weekend, and was shocked to find damages in the stations’ interior as well as broken items on the property.
Scratches have been found on specially-designed benches in at least four underground stations at Muzium Negara, Pasar Seni, Merdeka and Bukit Bintang, said Mass Rapid Transit Corporation Sdn Bhd (MRT Corp) Strategic Communications and Stakeholder Relations director Datuk Najmuddin Abdullah.
“So many scratches on benches and walls. Damages in toilets – a toilet in an OKU was broken 2 days ago,” he revealed in a Facebook post, adding that closer examination showed that the scratches on the benches, which were built from winning entries in a design competition for students, were not accidentally caused by bags or other items but were most likely acts of vandalism. “We had to remove one of the benches to get it repaired, and have spent RM10,000 to repair the damage caused so far,” he explained.
He spotted a broom stick and a broken spotlight on the rooftop covering Exit F at the Bukit Bintang MRT Station as well. “I’m sure those 2 dead things didn’t walk up the roof by themselves,” he said.
Datuk Najmuddin was also told by his colleagues that they spotted children climbing the Rukun Negara wall at the Merdeka MRT station. “We provide a first class facility but if the society is not ready with first class mentality to embrace it, we are going to waste a lot of money and time unnecessarily to do the repair works,” he wrote.
In other news, the ridership recorded a new high yesterday (Sunday, 23rd July 2017) of 142,313. Phase 1 of the line, from Sungai Buloh to the Semantan station in Kuala Lumpur, was opened in December last year, while the second phase connecting Semantan to Kajang opened last Monday (17th July 2017).
Sources: Najmuddin Abdullah, The Star Online / Featured image: Najmuddin Abdullah.
