SHAH ALAM: The Shah Alam City Council (MBSA), responding to a royal decree, today began dismantling road signs with both the Malay and Chinese languages in the city.
MBSA Corporate and Public Relations Division head Shahrin Ahmad said the work to dismantle all such signs is being done in stages and is expected to be completed soon.
The Sultan of Selangor, Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah, in a decree relayed yesterday through his private secretary Datuk Mohamad Munir Banir, wants the road signs changed and the work completed before the sultan’s 73rd birthday on Dec 11.
“MBSA upholds the decree of the Sultan of Selangor and will replace the road signs with also the Chinese script to those with only the Malay language,“ said Shahrin.
A Shah Alam resident had uploaded a post on Twitter questioning the use of road signs also bearing the Chinese script in a city where the majority of residents are Malays.
The individual also asked what had happened to the Jawi script that had previously been used on the road signs.
MBSA, in its reply to the Twitter user, had said that the meeting of the Selangor Local Government Committee on Jan 13, 2017, had decided on the use of road signs with two languages besides the romanised script.
It had said that the Jawi script will also be used for the road signs in traditional villages and the Chinese script for the road signs in the new villages, depending on the community in the area.
In Putrajaya, Shah Alam MP Khalid Samad said all quarters should abide by the decree of the sultan on the changing of the road signs.
Khalid, who is also the Federal Territories Minister, said the matter of the road signs in Shah Alam came under the jurisdiction of the Selangor government.
He said there is no problem with the road signs in the federal territories, “they are OK.”
“It is only rational for the road signs to be retained in the Malay language for the convenience of the people,“ he said after attending the national-level Maulidur Rasul celebration at the Putrajaya International Convention Centre. — Bernama
