A playground is supposed to be a safe place for kids to have fun. However, a recent visit to a number of playgrounds in Ipoh proved otherwise.
Broken slides, swings and facilities that are beyond repair greeted the eyes. As such, are these playgrounds suitable for children?
Amar Asyraf, a resident of Taman Meru, is concerned with the condition of the playground in his housing estate. He hopes the local authority responsible, Ipoh City Council, will take heed as children’s safety is at stake.
“It’s been years since they last upgraded the park. Ten years is my conservative estimate. This playground is close to schools, if only the council will maintain the facility, children can have fun rather than playing with their mobile phones.”
The playground in Ipoh Garden South has a broken-down slide and a pair of old swings. The whole area is unkempt with overgrown lallang and thick undergrowth. Obviously, it has not been maintained for a long time.
When the question was posed to Mayor Dato’ Zamri Man recently, this was his response:
“The council is working hard to improve amenities at major playgrounds, especially those at the Polo Ground since it’s being used by many Ipohites,” said Zamri.
The council, it seems, is only interested in major playgrounds and not the smaller ones. If this is the attitude of Ipoh City Council can we blame kids for spending time playing with their hand phones?
Ili Aqilah
