Socio-economic issues in the Batu parliamentary area of Kuala Lumpur: Perception of local youths

The Batu Parliamentary constituency is situated north of Kuala Lumpur bounded by the city, towns, housing estates and traditional Malay villages. As an area of intense urbanization and rapid land use change local socio-economic progress is the hallmark of this area. This article takes a closer look at the local youths’ perception and evaluation of the state of the development there. The study found that local residents still required such things as housing, employment opportunities, solutions to traffic congestion, adequate vehicle parking, and sanitation facilities. The need for further infrastructural and amenities improvements was also highlighted with respect to clinics, flyovers, prayer halls, recreational fields, and police stations. These perceived needs were expressed in conjunction with the youths’ positive perception of the ruling BN party’s performance. A high percentage (73.1) of the youths surveyed supported the government s agenda to strengthen youth development in the country. Similarly, 71.0 percent of them supported the government s slogan 1 Malaysia: Rakyat Didahulukan, Pencapaian Diutamakan. Over 70.7 percent of the youth respondents supported the government s institution of key performance indicators (KPI) stating that this would ensure good governance in the country. Overall, the local youths believed that the current Prime Minister s reform policies and leadership would strengthen the development of the country (70.9 percent). It is not surprising, therefore, that 54.7 percent of the youths expected the ruling BN to win the next general election as compared to 30.3 percent in favour of the opposition PKR and 15 percent undecided. They (56.1 percent) also expected the BN to reclaim the Batu parliamentary seat in the next general election.