Infrastructure lacking in Ye Township

March 25, 2013

HURFOM: Residents of Ye Township in Mon State recently reported feeling left out of government sponsored infrastructure and social development programs they said appear to be aiding other nearby areas. The perception has caused several Ye inhabitants to approach local and state-level governments, policymakers, members of parliament, and non-governmental organizations with the message that public assistance in transportation, communication technologies, and electricity is desperately needed to advance community wellbeing. The primary complaint made was that despite Burma’s political parties having new freedoms to submit community development proposals to the government, they have failed to champion these local causes.

Ye residents pointed out that the government has provided people in neighboring Thanbyuzayat Township with affordable wireless internet connectivity and Mudon Township with inexpensive electricity services. In comparison, Ye Township receives government-supported mobile phone service that can be cheaply accessed by buying a SIM card, but private companies reportedly still dominate utility provision and independently set prices for electricity, transportation, and telecommunications.

“[For business owners] to set up a satellite internet service costs 3,500,000 kyat from SKYNET,” said Ye businessman Nai Nyan Htaw. “However, individual users must each pay 25,000 kyat per month to connect a personal computer if they can’t [afford to] buy the satellite service [themselves]. Unfortunately for younger generations, they may graduate from university but they never learn how to use a computer or communicate via internet.”

Residents of some villages in Ye Township allege paying high premiums to private businesspeople for their electricity. Almost all of the 2,000 households in Duya Village reportedly pay U Kalar Kyi, a businessman from nearby Ah Sin Village, in order to have electricity around the clock. In Mawkanin Village, residents claimed they pay inflated prices to an individual seller from Tavoy in exchange for 12 hours of electricity per day. Private utility providers maintain that their electricity costs are dependent on the fluctuating price of petrol, requiring people to pay over 600 kyat per unit or between 25,000 and 30,000 kyat per month. While many villagers described the rates as burdensome, they said they pay because there is no government-led alternative.

Another complaint registered by Ye Township residents related to the private business monopoly over the 62-mile road between Thanbyuzayat Township and Ye. Every year, local companies allegedly lease the road from the government, thereby assuming responsibility for maintenance. Residents contend that potholes are not properly repaired and instead are filled with stones or coal tar that does not withstand extreme weather or wear from heavy commercial trucks.

“Since the motorway is in such bad condition, the price of products is going up every year,” said a Ye local. “When you order goods [from out of town], you have to pay the truck drivers a lot to deliver.”

U Min Ko Naing, one of the founders of the 88 Generation Students Group, described travelling from Rangoon to Tavoy Township along the Thanbyuzayat motorway.

“Out of all the highways, the road from Thanbyuzayat to Ye Township is the worst one. It shamed me as a citizen, and the authorities or companies responsible for the road should reconstruct the motorway.”

Written by Modinator · Filed Under News