PORT Dickson remains many a-family’s go-to destination for a weekend break.
The many miles of sandy beaches may no longer be pristine but still offer a welcome respite with a day’s water activities to fill the hours.
All one needs to do is roll out a mat and enjoy the sea breeze and waves. Or not.
It seems the issue of vendors staking claims to stretches of public beach is back. As reported by Harian Metro, a few short years after the “blue umbrella” menace was seemingly stamped out of popular beach resort Teluk Kemang, its place has been taken from by so-called “Bali” umbrella vendors.
This issue was highlighted on X by social media Roman Akromovic (@SyedAkramin) who lamented that these vendors of the Bali umbrellas would chase away visitors who dared to unfurl their mats in front of the fancy chairs and brollies.
Tahu tak apa masalah yang bakal timbul? Kartel payung ini akan halau semua pengunjung yang bentang tikar di depan payung mereka. Ini isu yang sama dengan ‘khemah biru’ dulu.
Nampaknya Majlis Perbandaran Port Dickson tak selesaikan masalah, mereka cuma tukar punca masalah sahaja. pic.twitter.com/WIQMxxyid9
— Roman Akramovich (@SyedAkramin) January 10, 2025
One netizen simply contended that only the shades of the umbrellas changed. The vendors which he dubbed as the “Bali umbrella cartel” remained the same.
One commenter lamented that B40 families could no longer picnic in those areas as the beach had become the exclusive property of these vendors.
With the original poster giving a rough estimation of the rental charges. If each seat costs between RM20-RM30 per day, it would set a family of five back a fair bit. He suggested buying the chair themselves and pitching up as it would still be cheaper.
More than a few took the authorities to task for failing to deal with this problem. One suggested to try pressuring the local MP into action.
As pointed out by one netizen, this initiative was actually the brainchild of the Port Dickson Municipal Council (MPPD).
The Negri Sembilan Local Government Development, Housing and Transport state EXCO Arul Kumar Jambunathan was quoted in the Harian Metro report as saying that the vendors were limited to just a 600-metre stretch of just one beach.
This contrasted with the blue umbrellas which proliferated in various beaches in Port Dickson.
However, one netizen questioned why the municipal authorities cannot just forbid any sort of tent or umbrellas to be set up on public beaches.
The said 600-metre stretch arrangement is set to be reviewed on a bi-annual basis with vendors found to be flouting the rules and regulations to have their licenses revoked immediately.
Although it may be limited to just a 600-metre stretch of the Port Dickson beach, such move will further alienate the B40 segment as they would see further signs of being left behind by a capitalist society.
A public beach should be just that. The relevant authorities need to think long and hard about how they are going to tackle this issue.
For the time being, one netizen had the best answer if he is asked to move from a spot on a public beach, pointing out that these vendors were renting the chairs as opposed to the actual beach per se. – Jan 14, 2025
Main image credit: Hikmah Viral/Facebook
