Kuala Lumpur may be a modern city today but it still has a lot of historical buildings that date back to a century ago or more. You can even find some of these buildings covered in beautiful graffiti art that has now been turned into shop lots.
However, some of these landmarks are not well-preserved and not necessarily in terms of the structure’s conditions but how it is being viewed in this modern age. Sadly for this iconic building, it has been drowned in all the other modern structures around it and Malaysians aren’t too happy about it. Here’s what they said:
Earlier this week, Twitter user @/nmraziz posted a throwback photo of what the old Federated Malay States (FMS) Survey office in KL used to look like in the 1920s. The building was designed by British colonial architect A.B.Hubbackand first established in 1910. It is known for its beautiful colonade stretching for over 120 metres along the side of a busy main street.
The historical landmark serves no purpose today other than being a tourist attraction. However, one netizen responded to the original tweet of what the building looks like now. While the old FMS Survey office looked fine, the once-breathtaking open view of the icon is now gone after the LRT Ampang Line was built over it. “Who approved elevated lines to be built across the old city? It’s disgraceful to the heritage and historical values of our country,” he wrote.
The post garnered a lot of attention from netizens who all agreed that Malaysia’s historical buildings and cultural heritage are not as well-preserved or appreciated as they should be. Some pointed out that the LRT Ampang Line was meant to be built underground, but for some reason, the plans fell through.
Others called out the Department of National Heritage as well as the Federal Department of Town and Country Planning for not properly utilizing these iconic buildings and structures as part of their urban planning. These opinions are not baseless, however, as netizens have previously expressed disappointment after learning that there are more skyscrapers in KL than in the entire continent of Europe.
It was said that the reason why Europe has fewer tall buildings is that they want to preserve their historical landmarks and cityscape. Perhaps Malaysia should learn a thing or two if we don’t want our history and heritage completely erased or overshadowed by modernism.
