Datuk Dr. Goh Ban Lee - Penang Monthly

George Town as an Engine of Growth

5 min read

Penang has the assets to thrive, but to succeed, it needs vision and leadership. George Town must reinvent itself as an attractive place for investment, work, and family life to maintain its international status.

by Datuk Dr. Goh Ban Lee

Remember the city status of George Town

5 min read

ACCORDING TO the Ministry of Housing and Local Government, there are 12 cities in Malaysia. They are Alor Setar, Ipoh, Kuala Lumpur, Petaling Ja...

by Datuk Dr. Goh Ban Lee

Replanning Malaysia’s Town Planning

5 min read

There is much that Malaysians are not happy about, such as traffic jams, flash floods, unsynchronised development, poor urban forms, massive development on hill slopes and projects that inhibit access to scenic areas, including sea shores.

by Datuk Dr. Goh Ban Lee

Butterworth Remains the Ugly Duckling

5 min read

When a clear vision for growth is missing, places and plans that hold promise turn into disappointments. Such is the case for Butterworth. But now that the town is richly represented in the state assembly, perhaps the aging duckling can yet turn out to be a swan.

by Datuk Dr. Goh Ban Lee

An Eminent Malaysian Academic Abroad

10 min read

Professor Aihwa Ong is an internationally respected anthropologist with at least 10 books to her name. Born in Penang where she had her entire pre-tertiary education, she is now a Professor of Socio-Cultural Anthropology at the University of California at Berkeley, the United States.

by Datuk Dr. Goh Ban Lee

Finding Penang’s niche

2 min read

From left to right:Professor Dr p. Ramasamy, Penang Deputy Chief Minister ii; Lim Guan Eng, Penang Chief Minister; Liew Chin Tong, seri executive director and...

by Dato' Dr. Ooi Kee Beng & Datuk Dr. Goh Ban Lee

Curitiba: An Ideal City of Buses

4 min read

The standard of urban living nowadays is largely judged by public transport standards. George Town has a lot to learn from others, such as Brazil's Curitiba.

by Datuk Dr. Goh Ban Lee

No liveable city without good coastal access

5 min read

Penangites are a lucky lot. Besides luxuriant hills, a city centre worthy of being classed a Unesco World Heritage Site and endless tasty street foods, they get to enjoy long stretches of sandy beaches.

by Datuk Dr. Goh Ban Lee

Let’s Do What’s Needed To Make Penang Clean And Green

5 min read

Penang's Cleaner Greener Initiative aims to create a sustainable, attractive city. The focus is on preserving open spaces, maintaining parks, and ensuring political will to protect green areas from misuse.

by Datuk Dr. Goh Ban Lee

Improving Penang’s Wet Markets

4 min read

Supermarkets may be seen as symbols of urban development, but it is not true that they have replaced our wet markets. What would Penang be without fresh produce from Chowrasta, Jelutong or Batu Lanchang?

by Datuk Dr. Goh Ban Lee

The State Should Repaint All Low Cost Flats

4 min read

Strongly subsidising the repainting of low-cost and low-medium-cost flats in Penang will definitely improve living conditions there, and make the state sparkle more.

by Datuk Dr. Goh Ban Lee

Clarifying The Role of Politicians in Development Control

5 min read

RECENTLY, residents of Taman Desaria on Penang Island went to the press to complain that the developer of a housing project that was under appeal in the Appeals Board had begun clearing the land and paving an access road to the site (New Straits Times, July 15, 2011; Sunday Star, July 17, 2011).

by Datuk Dr. Goh Ban Lee