A view of the Petronas petroleum processing plant in Kerteh, Kemaman. - Photo: Bernama
CHUKAI: If you are wondering whether there is another "City of Lights" outside the country’s capital, then wonder no more - the lights from the Petronas petroleum processing plant in Kerteh in the Kemaman parliamentary constituency here have also given the district the same nickname.
The presence of the petroleum processing plant, together with electronic, manufacturing, and logistics industries in the district since the 1980s, has drastically transformed its economic landscape from being focused solely on agriculture and fisheries to becoming one of the most advanced in the state.
Not only had the industries created thousands of new job opportunities for locals, but they also generated downstream economic sectors such as the food and beverage industry, accommodation, tourism, and e-hailing and p-hailing services, due to high demand.
In fact, being the third largest district on the East Coast, located about 160km from the state’s capital Kuala Terengganu, Kemaman was also the first to have a shopping mall and became a shopping destination for residents in Kuala Terengganu and Kuantan, Pahang, at one time, according to a resident in Bukit Kuang, Raihan Tikah, 59.
"When I first moved here, it still had a lot of forested areas; if there were houses, they were just a handful.
"My husband used to do odd jobs before he finally secured a job in the oil and gas sector,” said the woman who followed her husband, Jaafar Ismail, 67, from Kuala Terengganu to Kemaman some 40 years ago.
Besides the presence of companies such as Petronas, Shell and ExxonMobil, large projects such as the Kerteh Biopolymer Park have also brought about a positive impact and created new job opportunities for the people in Kemaman, which comprises four state constituencies namely Kemasik, Kijal, Air Putih and Tukai.
A restaurant operator in Taman Cukai Utama, Maizun Ahmad, 43, even admitted that the rapid development in Kemaman was her main reason for moving from Felda Neram 2 and starting her business here 18 years ago.
"I started with a school canteen business but when I saw the endless potential, I opened a restaurant. Now, Alhamdulillah, business is flourishing and there are so many customers, especially among factory, and oil and gas workers,” she said.
The industrial sector in Kemaman also contributed to the existence of over 40 coffee shops run by local entrepreneurs, especially the young, according to Pedalhaus coffee shop owner Muhammad Hafiz Yusof, 37.
"It is an open secret that those who work in the oil and gas sector earn quite a lucrative income so they don’t mind paying up to RM10 for a cup of coffee. So, demands are high. Many coffee lovers also prefer to drink local coffee now,” he said.
Industrial development and modernisation in Kemaman, however, do not prevent other traditional activities such as fishing from continuing to generate the economy of the local population.
Terengganu Fishermen Association (Penentu) chairman Mat Yassim Mohamed said there are now over 500 fishermen who are still actively fishing along the waters of Kemaman, especially from Teluk Kalong to Kuala Kemaman.
"But of the total, only 20% are young people because young people in Kemaman are more interested in working in other industries,” he said.
However, it is quite disappointing when the young people venturing into the industrial sector are only hired to fill low-level positions such as factory operators and general workers.
Resident Wan Muhammad Safuan Wan Salleh, 33, from Teluk Kalong said that this happened because high-level positions such as factory managers or supervisors are mostly filled by foreigners.
Another resident Mohammad Yusri A. Rahman, 40, expressed hope that the new Kemaman representative to be elected at the parliamentary by-election next month will be someone with a vision to develop the district for the long term.
"The important thing is for the elected representative to look at all the basic infrastructure, and if possible raise the bar for the socio-economic development of the local people here,” he said.
Voters in Kemaman will go to the polls soon to elect their new MP after the Terengganu Election Court nullified the victory of Che Alias Hamid of PAS, who had been declared the winner of the Kemaman parliamentary seat in the 15th General Election last year.
The Election Commission (EC) has set polling for the by-election on Dec 2, while nominations are on Nov 18 and early voting on Nov 28.
The onus will be on the new representative to ensure the lights continue to shine brightly in Kemaman. - Bernama
