PETALING JAYA: Melaka’s tourism boom has brought millions of visitors and with them, traffic snarls and growing pressure on everyday life – issues political analysts say could shape voter sentiment in the coming state polls.
Universiti Malaya political analyst Dr Mohammad Tawfik Yaakub said voters could judge the state government not just by mere visitor numbers, but by how tourism affected their daily lives.
“Traffic congestion, especially around heritage zones on weekends and public holidays, will be a visible issue because residents bear its costs daily through longer travel times, parking shortages and pressure on local roads,” he said when contacted yesterday.
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Tawfik said the wider question was whether tourism growth was being managed sustainably.
Voters could also be concerned about the concentration of hotels and homestays, overcrowding at major attractions, cleanliness, waste management and the preservation of heritage areas.
There was also the question of whether tourism development benefited ordinary Melaka folks rather than mainly large operators, he added.
“Voters may also expect tourism-related jobs to provide stable and adequate incomes, particularly amid cost-of-living pressures,” he said.
Universiti Sains Malaysia political analyst Prof Datuk Dr Sivamurugan Pandian said the election was likely to revolve around bread and butter concerns and the state’s broader development direction.
These, he said, included the cost of living, jobs, housing, traffic, infrastructure, tourism and the quality of public service delivery.
“The key question is whether economic and tourism growth is translating into tangible benefits for ordinary Melakans,” he said.
Sivamurugan said local issues were likely to carry greater weight than national political narratives, although matters such as corruption, integrity and good governance could still feature.
Nusantara Academy for Strategic Research senior fellow Prof Dr Azmi Hassan, however, said road congestion should be viewed in the context of Melaka’s success in attracting visitors.
He said traffic jams during weekends and school holidays had become “part and parcel” of life in a major tourism state, but argued that conditions were still manageable.
“It is not that bad compared to Cameron Highlands, which is jam-packed during the weekends,” he said.
Azmi said Melaka’s ability to continue drawing large numbers of tourists was something neighbouring states such as Negri Sembilan and Johor would envy.
He also said the incumbent Barisan Nasional government was likely to present the tourism sector as evidence that the state was heading in the right direction.
However, Azmi said one issue that warranted attention was the over-commercialisation of Melaka’s historical attractions.
He said some tourism products risked becoming overly fabricated and no longer accurately representing the state’s history.
“But I think the Melaka state government will use this particular theme to say that we are on the right track,” he said, adding that this could make it difficult for the opposition to attack the state’s tourism performance outright.
Melaka’s last state polls took place in 2021. The mandate of the current administration is due to end in December.
On Sept 23, the Melaka state assembly was dissolved.
The Election Commission will meet on Oct 7 to decide on dates for the nomination and polling.
