UTAR NEW VILLAGE COMMUNITY PROJECT

REPORT

NAME OF NEW VILLAGE:

PADANG LEMBU 巴东伦武

KEDAH

Project carried out by:

Student Name ID Number Course Year/Semester

1.Lim May Chi 1200642 Communications and

Networking Y1/S2

2.Chai Kai Lum 1205622 Computer Science Y1/S1

3. Tan Woan Pey 1205367 Computer Engineering Y1/S1

DATE OF COMPLETION

OCTOBER 2013

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ABSTRACT

Padang Lembu was established in 1950. It is located in the district of Kuala Muda in

the state of Kedah. Towns close to this new village are Gurun (12 km away) and

Sungai Petani (34 km away). Oil palm plantations, rubber estates and nurseries are

the main sources of income for villagers. Padang Lembu could attract tourist by

publishing its local festivals and cuisine (porridge in “laksa” paste, cendol and game

meat).

The place where villagers gather, Dewan Orang Ramai

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INTRODUCTION

Padang Lembu is located in Kuala Muda, Kedah. Before the establishment of the

new village, it is a ranch which is a place to rear and raise cow and of course because

there is a field, therefore the place is known as “Cow’s Field” which is in Malay

“Padang Lembu”. Mr. Fan is the headman of the village from 1973 to 2013.

The retired Headman of Padang Lembu

One of the nearby towns to this village is Gurun which is 12 km away. Gurun is

located at the north-west of Kuala Muda. The other neighboring town is Sungai

Petani which is 34 km to the southwest of Kuala Muda. Other than these two towns,

villagers often go to Guar Chempedak which is around 10 km to the northwest of

Kuala Muda. Villagers have to travel to Guar Chempedak or Gurun for registration

of official documents at the “Jabatan Pendaftaran”.

Padang Lembu is the biggest Chinese village in Kedah state. According to the

secretary of the village committee, this village has a population of approximately

3600, the vast majority of whom are Chinese (85%), followed by Indians (13%), and

Siamese and Malays.

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Buildings in the village are made up of shop houses which are located in the business

area and residential houses. Most homes are single-storey bungalows located in 5000

square feet of land which are either freehold or on lease (30 to 99 year lease).

This village was established in 1949, during the period of Malayan Emergency. The

British government guarded the village closely to ensure that communist insurgents

did not use the villagers as a source of supplies.

The unique foods found in Padang Lembu are game meat, porridge with “laksa” paste

and “cendol”. Examples of game meat are snake and deer meat.

Mr. Koh introduced us to the porridge with “laksa” paste and “cendol”

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ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES

Villagers who are Malaysian citizens may apply for land. On average, each household

has about 10 hectares. The main economic activities in Padang Lembu are as follows:

Nursery; the president of SJK(C) Mah Wah have started a nursery when he

allocated land by the government. The saplings from this nursery are exported

to every part of Malaysia. There is the opportunity for future investment and

expansion because there are organizations that buy large quantities of saplings.

Rubber Tapping. Rubber plantations have replaced many paddy fields. Many

villagers earn a living from these plantations.

A rubber estate in Padang Lembu

Palm oil. Oil palm estates have also replaced many paddy fields. The

fruit of these palms are sold for processing into palm oil. This is another

income earner for the villagers.

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Palm oil plantation

Longan orchard. Three to four years ago, the plantation of longan was popular.

The fruit produced by local farms were sweet and big. However, this business

has dwindled as the farmers concerned have shifted their focus to other areas

in agriculture.

Transportation of oil palm fruit for processing

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In the village, there is a wet market which runs daily and a night market which

opens every Sunday. There are restaurants, hair salons, mini markets and

workshops. There is no shopping centre, bank/financial institution or post office.

Historically, there were banks such as Bank Pertanian and Bank Simpanan

Nasional (BSN). These banks were closed because of the low volume of business.

The same goes for the post office.

One of the restaurants in Padang Lembu

One of the hair salons in Padang Lembu

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A pharmacy in Padang Lembu

One of the hardware stores in Padang Lembu

The telecommunications store

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Range of service available at the telecommunication outlet

There are also petrol stations in the village.

The Caltex petrol station

Based on Padang Lembu’s economic activities and resources, there are opportunities

for future investments, especially in the development of new nurseries. There seems

to be a strong demand for saplings. The estimated monthly income for the villagers

who work in Padang Lembu is RM 600.

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SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND RELIGIOUS PRACTICES

Padang Lembu has a population consisting of Chinese (85%), Indian (13%), Malays

and Siamese. Owing to the composition of its population, the main languages spoken

are Chao Zhou (a Chinese dialect), Mandarin and Tamil. There are also people

speaking in Thai and Bahasa Malaysia.

The Buddha temple

The Buddhist temple

Religions practised in this village include Buddhism, Taoism, Christianity and Islam.

It is therefore not surprising to find a Buddhist temple, a Taoist temple, a Hindu

temple and a church in the village.

The voluntary groups in this village include the Young Entrepreneur Association, the

Buddhist Society, “Rukun Tetangga” and the Hindu Society. The village does not

have any cooperatives or farmers’ association. The main political party in this village

is the MCA.

When we visited the village, residents were celebrating the “Ghost Festival” which is

held on the 14th

day of 7th

moon in the lunar calendar. During the ghost month, it is

believed that the ghosts or spirits of the dead are “released” into the human realm.

This festival normally lasts for 12 days. During that period, there is entertainment like

Chinese opera or performance by local singers.

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Large joss sticks are used for prayers during the ghost festival

Currently, villagers have gathered funds for the construction of a new temple building.

Elaborate art and sculptures are found on the temple walls.

Beautiful sculptures on the temple walls

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One of the designs on the temple wall

The stage used for performances during village festivals

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Villagers helping each other to prepare the necessary paraphernalia for

special prayers.

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EDUCATION

Padang Lembu has 2 kindergartens and 2 primary schools. There is one private

kindergarten, known as Mah Wah Kindergarten (马华幼儿园), and a government run

kindergarten. The primary schools are SJK (C) Mah Wah and SJK (T) Kalawani.

Mr. Koh brought us to visit one of the primary school, S.J.K. (C) Mah Wah Padang

Lembu

The government kindergarten has a class which consists of 25 students. There is one

teacher and one assistant teacher in this kindergarten. Besides helping the teacher in

the class, the assistant teacher also acts as the cleaner to keep the kindergarten

environment clean.

The private kindergarten, Mah Wah Kindergarten, has 2 classes of students. In total,

it has 70-80 students and 2 teachers.

Of the two primary schools, SJK (T) Kalawani is a Tamil school and SJK (C) Mah

Wah is a Chinese school. SJK (T) Kalawani has 150 students and 15 teachers while

it has adequate number of teachers, this school needs a counselor. SJK (C) Mah Wah

currently has 296 students and 24 teachers, including the principal and 3 senior

assistants who are appointed by the Ministry of Education. The primary schools are

given full subsidy by the government and there are adequate facilities in these schools.

Facilities available include guard house with 24 hours guard on duty, security alarm,

sufficient classroom, tables, chairs, small school gardens, activities area for co-

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curricular activity, ping pong hall, etc. The ping pong hall at SJK (C) Man Wah was

built in 2004. In recent years, the ping pong players from SJK (C) Mah Wah have

won many state and national level competitions. Mr. Koh is the coach for the ping

pong club.

The guard house of the school

The ping pong hall in the school

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Secondary schools, colleges and universities are not available in Padang Lembu.

Students who intend to further their studies after primary school have to go to the

neighboring towns such as Gua Cempedak, Gurun and Sungai Petani. Normally,

students from Padang Lembu prefer to study at SMK Batu Empat or SMK Gurun.

SMK Batu Empat does not have “remove classes”. As a result, primary school

students who fail the Ujian Penilaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR) have to proceed to

SMK Gurun. In either case, students from Padang Lembu have to face the

inconvenience of travelling to and from neighboring towns every weekday when they

pursue their secondary school education.

The nearest university from Padang Lembu is UUM, Universiti Utara Malaysia. This

local university was officially established on 16 February 1984 and it is the sixth

Malaysian public university.

This village would benefit from the setting up of a secondary school. The villagers

can save time and also transportation fees to fetch their children to schools in other

towns. More importantly, parents can spend more time guiding their children and

making sure they attend school every day.

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INFRASTRUCTURE AND FACILITIES

There is piped water and electricity in village. The traditional waste disposal method

was landfill, but waste disposal is now managed by Idaman Environment which

collects all the rubbish in this village. Flush toilets are used in all houses. Villagers

have access to fixed line and mobile phone services.

There is only one private clinic, Desa Clinic, in this village. Unfortunately, there is no

doctor in the village. The function of the clinic is for the delivery of babies and

dispensing of medication for minor ailments. There is no hospital. Public

transportation such as buses and trains are not available. There is a bus stop in this

village but the bus service has stopped.

The bus stop

Others facilities in the village include: a fire station (run by volunteers), “Pondok

Polis”, playground, football field and basketball court. Ping pong equipment are

provided in the hall of Sekolah Rendah Jenis Kebangsaan (Cina) Mah Wah Padang

Lembu. The fire station was established after a big fire in 1991 and the building is

well maintained. There are only 2 policemen in the “Pondok Polis”.

The village playground is in satisfactory condition but garbage disposal has to be

improved. The basketball court needs maintenance, e.g. no net on the ring. The

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construction of facilities for ping pong would benefit the village youth as ping pong is

a popular sport in the village.

The fire station in Padang Lembu

The bomba garage located behind the fire station

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The activity centre for firemen

Security in Padang Lembu is considered good yet improvement is still needed to

prevent thefts.

The road system in this village is in satisfactory condition. The roads are well

surfaced. Unfortunately, these roads are generally narrow- a threat to pedestrian

safety.

Road condition at Padang Lembu

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The drainage system is in poor condition. There is rubbish in drains near the shops.

This needs improvement because this will lead to the breeding of mosquitoes.

The poor condition of the drain

Garbage collection service in Padang Lembu is adequate. There are trash bins near

all the houses and shops. These trash bins are managed by Environment Idaman, a

company that collects all the rubbish at this village.

A typical garbage can in the residential area

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PROBLEMS

First, disposal of garbage at rubbish dumps should be stopped. These places are

unsightly and unhealthy. Besides, rubbish is also thrown into the drains. This leads to

blockage of water flow thereby creating a breeding ground for mosquitoes- another

health hazard.

.

The polluted drain

The rubbish dump

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The village headman feels that safety and security is not a major problem. The

compound of many houses are not fenced or gated. For houses which are fenced and

gated, the gates are often left unlocked. There are only 2 policemen on duty and often

very little crime-mainly petty thefts. In general, security in the village is not a major

concern.

Gated house but is not locked

Non-gated house

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However, the availability of public transport is an issue. Public transport such as

buses, trains and taxis are not available in Padang Lembu. Villagers face a lot of

inconvenience because of this situation.

There is also a lack of medical services in the village. There is no hospital and the

only clinic in Padang Lembu does not have a doctor. The villagers who need medical

treatment have to go to neighboring town. The only clinic (Klinik Desa) is used for

the delivery of babies.

The Tamil primary school needs counselors for its students. There is no secondary

school in the village. This causes great inconvenience for the parents who have to

bring their children to neighboring towns or pay for the transport.

Many teenagers and young adults have left the village for further education. These is

a problem if many of these youth do not return to the village- potential of an aging

population which may not be able to fuel further development in Padang Lembu.

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RECOMMENDATIONS

Villagers could attract tourists to Padang Lembu by publicizing its cultural events and

festivals. This included the ghost festival and mooncake festival. In addition, local

specialties such as porridge with “laksa” paste, cendol and game meat could be

interest to tourist.

Villagers could form a local Rukun Tetangga to patrol the village especially at night.

This will complement the work of the 2 policemen on duty.

The village headman, with the support of the village committee should appeal to the

authorities for better medical facilities and better access to secondary school

education.

The village headman and committee should organize campaigns to reduce rampant

disposal at garbage of rubbish dumps and into the drains.

DISCLAIMER:

Information contained in this report was compiled by the University’s students on voluntary basis.

Although every effort has been made to check the accuracy of the report, the University accepts no

responsibility whatsoever for any errors or omissions, if any, the University reserves the right to make

changes on the information at any time without prior notice.

Should there be any queries regarding contents of the report, please contact:

Department of Soft Skills Competency

Tel: 03-79582628 ext 8274, 8656, 8269 (Klang Valley Campus)

05- 4688888 ext 2295/2297/2299/2300 (Perak Campus)