These abandoned houses used to be the homes of expatriates who have left their property, rendering it stagnant since a very long time ago. We have been staying in this house for over 40 years and things like lizards and snakes keep intruding our home, and I can’t let my dogs loose or they’ll attack them. Smaller insects and pests including mosquitos and other critters have been causing problems and my poor boy is always getting bitten by them.
We have called the MBI to help clear the overgrowth in the four vacant houses around my residence, however, they have yet to come despite telling us that they will look into it; which has been an ongoing problem for over 15 years.
On the other hand, the trees from the graveyard just next door have been growing into my compound and leaves are falling everywhere as a result. Snakes like King Cobras and Iguanas come in quite often – once every few months at least. In fact, they have managed to come into our rooms on a few occasions which is pretty terrifying!
During the Qingming Festival (Chinese tomb-sweeping day), they set fire to the cemetery to clear the grass and vegetation which could be very dangerous to surrounding areas.
My neighbours, too, are experiencing the same problems that we have and I hope something can be done to put an end to our dilemma.
R. Devindran
