What's Up, Doc?

26-year-old Mohd Noor Azam Mohd Nazri, of Taman Bunga Raya first went missing on May 3 after a red tudung-clad woman tapped him on his forehead inside a lift in Sultanah Bahiyah Hospital in Alor Setar at 6.30am.

The trainee doctor found himself at the Sungai Petani City Square shopping complex two days later.
His mobile phone and RM500 were missing.

As he was walking to the hospital car park on May 12, the same woman was believed to approach him again.
This time, he found himself at the Kuala Kedah jetty two days later.
He lost his watch and RM300.

After the young doctor went missing on two occasions after being tapped on his forehead by a mysterious young woman clad in a red tudung, he went missing for the third time.
His mother, Natrah Shaari believed that the same woman was behind it.

Dr Mohd Noor Azam turned up for work at the Sultanah Bahiyah Hospital in Kedah on that Tuesday, May 16.
But when his father, Mohd Nazri Wan Senik, came to fetch him in the evening, he was nowhere to be found.

The father tried to contact him but his calls went unanswered.

The father then went to the ward where he was normally on duty but was told that he had not turned up for work that day.

The father was very sure that when he sent him to work earlier that day, the son was fully attired as a houseman.
He had no idea that the son did not report for duty that day.

The Moscow Medical Academy graduate is on a year of housemanship at the hospital since October last year.

Mother of Noor Azam lodged a report at the Kubang Pasu police headquarters.
She was worried that something bad might have happened to him.
She claimed him as a good son.

The doctor was found 26 days later, after security guards at a supermarket in Kuantan, Pahang, caught him for failing to pay his bill.

Dr Mohd Noor Azam Mohd Nazri who went missing from his home in northern Malaysia peninsula Kedah for almost a month, claimed that he had been hypnotised by the mysterious girl in a red tudung before the incident.
He said the same girl had also been responsible for his past two disappearances.

Safe and sound: Dr Mohd Noor is glad to be home with his parents Mohd Nazri Wan Senik and Natrah Shaariat. – Bernama
 

Dr Mohd Noor remembered the girl's promise to release him on Saturday, June 11, which was the day he was to get engaged.

He was found after security guards at a supermarket in Pahang caught him for failing to pay his food he had had.

When both parents met their son at the Kuantan police station, he was wearing clothes belonging to someone else.

He was carrying a bag which was not his, too.
The doctor was carrying a bag containing, among others, a toothbrush, a comb and hair oil when he was found.

He expressed shock when told that he had been missing for almost a month.

He just heard voices instructing him and he thought he had been missing for four days only.

He arrived to to his senses only after he was stopped by the security guards at the shopping complex in Kuantan.

The 26-year-old claimed to have been approached by the girl, but had no other recollection of what happened to him.
He did not even know how he arrived in Kelantan, Terengganu and Pahang.

He just heard voices of instruction.
All he could remember was a familiar voice as he heard before.

His parents were informed that the son had withdrawn money from an ATM machine in Kuantan.

Kemayan City, The Other Twin Of Pacific Mall

Kemayan City haunted?
I did not believe My relative who visited Me in the middle of last year.
She stays in Australia and had heard about it, many years before 2010.
I'm in JB and had just hear about it... from her.

But when her ex-neighbour, a JB resident too, agreed to her story, it seems that I am the last resident to hear about it.
The ex-neighbour laughed at me as she said, the story had even been published in Metro daily.

******

One of the story, not in Metro, but New Straits Times is here 

Why Ghost Stories Excite 
Jassmine Shadiqe 

EVERYONE has a ghost story to tell. In fact looking for haunted places and ghosts can actually generate a modest income for some.

Today, there are reality shows, TV programmes and dedicated websites just on ghosts and haunted houses, and some associations calling themselves ghost hunters, seekers or finders are sharing their experiences.

I stumbled upon a website that charges a fee to teach people how to take pictures of ghosts and haunted houses.

What is this crazy attraction we have for the unexplained? Well, I can't explain either.

Recently, my colleagues and I, who had often heard numerous alleged ghost appearances at an abandoned shopping complex in Jalan Skudai, Johor Baru, decided to visit the place.

We met up about 11pm, armed with torch-lights, we drove to the abandoned shopping complex that is known as Kemayan City Shopping Mall.

First, we explored the complex compound on foot.

The mall was planned to be Johor Baru's single biggest integrated shopping and commercial development which was due to be open in June 1998.

The RM400 million complex, with 64,800 sq m of retail space, is spread over a 4.8ha site in Tampoi.

The property is a project by Capital Dynasty Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary of public-listed Parit Perak Holdings Bhd, and is managed by Kemayan Management Services Sdn Bhd, a member of the Kemayan Group.

Though the actual reason on why the project was not completed is not available, it is learnt that the developers wanted to add additional floors to the building but it was not approved.

As the management waited to reapply for the necessary approvals, then came the recession.

About four years later, it was still uncompleted. The building became a den for addicts and there were numerous reports of vandalism. They stripped off metal trimmings, pipes, and anything that could be sold to scrap metal operators.

At one time, it is believed to have been a haunt for lovers.

Then, there were reports of illegal immigrants, beggars and the homeless making the complex their home.

Fights broke out among the "residents" of the building and they accused one another of stealing.

Some people said some of them did not survive the fights and died, some of old age, sickness and also drug overdose.

Since they did not have family members, their bodies were just buried in the complex or left to rot on the upper floors of the complex.

I also heard a story of a pregnant woman (an illegal immigrant) living on one of the floors of the multi-storey shopping complex.

It is said that she was in labour and while making her way to the ground floor, she fell and landed on the jutting metal steel cemented to the floor.

She did not die on the spot and was said to have screamed in pain for about an hour and pleaded with them to help her, before she went quiet. The occupants did not think much of it and buried her at the site.

However, they started seeing a toddler running around, followed by scary screams and that spooked them, prompting them to leave.

There are other stories too, and some say people who practiced black magic, used the complex as their training ground.

Some say that people who were possessed by evil spirits, got exorcised and had "locked" the spirits in the complex.

There are also several people, who claimed they got involved in accidents in the area, as they spotted huge black shadowy figures and lost control of their vehicles.

I do not know if any of the stories told are true, but what I know is when we were walking around, we felt as though someone was watching us, or maybe we were just being paranoid.

Maybe, we would not have felt the same way if we had not heard of these stories prior to our visit or if we had decided to visit Kemayan City during the day.

I cannot say for sure if the place is haunted, but it could be a tourist attraction.

There are several ghost towns and haunted buildings in the world that are tourist attractions. Among them are Tombstone, Arizona; Jerome, Arizona; Oatman, Arizona; Bannack, Montana; Kolmanskop; and Elizabeth Bay.

These places attract tourists by the millions. There are books written, movies-made and photographs taken of these places.

Kemayan City would be a perfect site for an Alfred Hitchcock's movie or even for the directors of Jangan Pandang Belakang, Congkak, Santau and Jangan Tegur.

Source: New Straits Times - Wednesday, February 16, 2010

******

Kemayan City, property of  Capital Dynasty Sdn Bhd is now famous not for its best shopping experience, but for its mysterious ghostly accounts.
Especially to residents in the area of Tampoi, Skudai and Johor Bahru.
And in countries like Australia too.

Various accounts of ghostly sightings and mysterious cases had occurred.
A number of passersby who pass by Kemayan City, or stopping at the nearby traffic light saw the place abuzz with activities.
Others saw it adorned with nice flower decorations.
The sight of a burnt man with dangling burnt skin staggering, had also been seen.

Several residence of nearby Taman Bukit Mewah had seen the sudden brightly lit abandoned Kemayan City in the middle of the night.
Some realised the pattern of eerie sound of dogs howling after midnight rain.

But the most famous is the experience of a Singaporean family, who saw the complex which supposedly abandoned earlier was decorated glamorously with colourful lights.

Crowd was entering the shopping mall.

It seems something grand was going on.

They stopped by the mall.

True enough, the complex was finally open for business.

A grand opening ceremony was in place with entertainment and sales.

After shopping, they stopped by at their relative's house in Kampung Pasir, a few minute's drive from Kemayan.

The family then told their relatives about the grand opening, ongoing sales and showed them their purchases.

A surprising moment indeed, to see that their purchases disappeared. 

But dried leaves were aplenty.

Their relatives assured them that the mall had been left empty for many years.

And it was never open for business till now.

How true the claim is?
Anybody's guess.
The abandoned building of Kemayan City Mall is still a mystery.

******

Various haunting experiences had been told and shared by locals and from other cities too.
Many were 'tricked' by mysterious events.
I do not know how true the stories are, told by My relative in Australia, her ex-neighbour and My other friends.
The once beautiful mammoth structure of Kemayan City is a reminder of the 90s recession.
The seemed completed building from far fell into despair and abandonment just within the span of a few months.

Without hesitance, vandals quickly moved in to break all the windows and lay and they didn't stop until all the glass were broken.
Window frames, and drain covers went missing.
Those who stay nearby or use the small road at the side of the building can see men getting away with cables on their head. 
In short, everything and anything seem valuable, which they could lay their hands, fingers and legs on were not spared.
It soon became haven for drug addicts.

******

We used to pass by Kemayan City, My Husband and I.

He did not talk about ghost story.
But He never fails to relate depressive stories of one after another investor, whenever the massive gloomy building appeared in front of Our eyes, when We pass by that massive building.

******       ******      ******

Buyers In A Quandary Over Stalled Project

JOHOR BARU: A businessman who purchased two shop units as an investment for his children never thought his decision could burden them.

Loh Ah Wah, who bought the RM1mil property in the abandoned Kemayan City Mall off Jalan Skudai here, said he had been repaying the loan since 1998.

“I took a 10-year loan but am still repaying it as I could not afford the RM4,000 monthly repayments,” he said.

“My children who have started working are helping me with the loan,” said the father of five.

Loh, who represents the Kemayan City Owners and Vendors Association as chairman, said that many investors had proposed to buy the building but the bank which owned it rejected the offers as too low.

“The latest investor offered 22% of the amount we paid per unit, the highest so far, but most of us were not satisfied.

“The sum is not even enough to cover the interest on our loans,” he said, adding that the amount was RM1.2bil for the whole building.

He said that only 40% of the units were sold, adding that 200 of the 600 buyers recently attended a briefing by the project’s liquidator.

Loh said the majority of the owners were against selling their units at the proposed price.

He added that 428 of the 551 retail units and 201 of the 1,026 office units were sold.

Loh pointed out that, according to the liquidator, the approval of 75% of the owners was needed for the transaction.

Another meeting between the liquidator and the buyers was expected to be fixed in a month.

“Construction of Kemayan City commenced at the end of 1994 and the project was completed in 2000 after three years of delay.

“Since then, the building was abandoned and vandalised. It is now a shelter for drug addicts,” he said.

Johor probably has the highest number of abandoned buildings in the country with no fewer than 15 projects shelved since the mid-90s.

Source: The Star - Wednesday, October 8, 2010

******

That is just one of the almost similar stories told by My Husband.
And there were many more of other investors' woes that I could hardly digest in the same and other abandoned buildings.

As if to add salt to the wound, go through this.
A real attack to the already feeble hearts and pockets.

Not In The Best Interest Of All Parties

I REFER to your report "Council waiting to be paid RM15m" (NST, June 16) and the statement by the Housing and Local Government Committee chairman Datuk Halimah Sadique that the Johor government is placing a caveat on 52 abandoned buildings. It is most disappointing that the state government considers taxing the 52 buildings that are abandoned.

Firstly, it is shocking to know that there are so many abandoned buildings in Johor Baru.

Secondly, the state government should facilitate the rehabilitation of these buildings by waiving the assessment on buildings that can't be used.

Thirdly, there was no attempt by politicians to look into this problem. There is also no legal protection for buyers of commercial space unlike residential properties.

At a time when the government is promoting the Iskandar Development Region (Iskandar), it should make it its priority that abandoned buildings such as Kemayan City, Pacific Mall, Lot 1, Castle Inn, etc, be completed and occupied.

What would potential investors think of Iskandar if they see so many abandoned buildings stripped of all the cables and metal parts?

About RM10 million was needed to build Pacific Mall and in 1999, it was abandoned. Today, the entire 25 storey-building's copper and steel fittings have been stripped, including the escalators.

It would take RM55 million to restore the building.

Its location near the traffic police station did not deter thieves and this has been going on for nine years.

The government should consider compensating the owners for their losses.

TAN BENG SOOI

Chairman Pacific Mall Buyers Committee Johor Baru. 

Source: New Straits Times - Jun 22, 2007

****** 

Rid The Country Of Dirty Image

I could not agree more with Jim McNeil’s views as expressed in his letter “Beauty of country marred by litter problem” (The Star, April 22).

While I applaud Malaysia’s bold ambition to attain developed nation status by 2020, the sad reality is that Malaysia has a serious littering problem which should be solved immediately.

Take my beloved hometown Johor Baru as an example. Most parts of the city are not only riddled with litter, but are also smothered by unsightly advertisements of loan sharks everywhere – on traffic lights, telephone booths and even road signs and very often blocking the all-important road names!

Dilapidated buildings of defunct shopping malls such as Pacific Mall, Waterfront City and the infamous Kemayan City (whose construction was aborted halfway) have provided eyesores for city dwellers and visitors for many years now.

Whenever I drive by these monstrosities, I cannot help but shake my head in utter disbelief and frustration as I ponder how much longer the authority will allow these unsightliness to prevail.

And imagine the inevitable contrast between dirty Johor Baru and squeaky-clean Singapore!

While driving on the roads, it is fairly common to see people unscrupulously disposing of garbage from their vehicles. I sincerely hope that the relevant authority would seriously look into enforcing anti-littering regulation just as rigorously as they have been enforcing the compulsory backseat safety belt rule.

Johor Baru, just like many cities in Malaysia, needs to seriously look at the litter problem on top of the escalating crime rate and security issues so that this city does not deteriorate. Otherwise, it is meaningless to boast world-class developments such as Iskandar Malaysia with the tagline “The World In One City”.

RYANN LAI,
Johor Baru.

Source: The Star - Friday, April 23, 2010

******  

Kemayan City, sits on a 12.4acre site along Jalan Skudai, is the largest abandoned project in JB.

It is with great hope that the abandoned building will be refurbished and redeveloped.

It was reported here, management of Kemayan City had changed hand.
It had since being taken over by Blackstone Eight Sdn. Bhd., and work on it had since started since September last year...

Paranormal Sighting In Learning Institutions With The Star

Does accounts of supernatural activities in schools are very much alive and well in this modern day and age?

Does sightings of apparitions and unexplained occurences are popular shared topics of conversations for current and former students of their eerie experiences?

About 3 months ago, StarEducation sent a callout asking students to write in their personal accounts of mysterious happenings in their schools or universities.

Based on The Sunday Star report on May 9, students walked down their journey doing their rounds in the local learning institutions looking at the creepy tales.

Colonial era schools such as this one in Kuala Lumpur tend to have more than their fair share of creepy stories.

Historic haunts
Invented or real histories of schools are a common starting ground for terrifying tales.

At the more historic schools around the country, it would seem that some of the troops who arrived in Malaya during the Japanese Occupation of the early 1940s have never left.
Tales of schools being former Japanese torture camps are a particularly popular explanation for apparitions of headless corpses and sounds of marching soldiers in the dead of night.

Perhaps the strangest tale in circulation at the moment are sightings of beheaded nuns in a well-known girls’ school in Kuala Lumpur.

 

While the school canteen may be the focal point for students during recess, it can at other times, turn out to be an eerie place where one can hear mysterious sounds and witness strange happenings.

 Although the brutalities committed during that era cannot be denied, conclusive proof of all the exact spots where the Kempeitai (Japanese secret police) murdered their victims is hard to find.

Consultant Mavindren Naidu however, believes that his former school in Ipoh is a hotbed of paranormal activity.
“From 1943 till the end of the war, the Japanese government did have their headquarters in Perak.
“It’s not surprising then if some of the locations in my school were previously used as execution spots by the army,” he says.

Mavindren claims that his former schoolmates have seen silhouettes of bodies hanging from trees, and screams echoing down empty hallways.
“I’ve experienced the screams myself once, while waiting for my father to pick me up after co-curricular activities.

“Maybe it was a classmate pulling my leg, but there were no other students around and it didn’t sound human...” he says.

 

Many a student will swear to spirits lurking in empty classrooms.

Declaring himself to be a sceptic, Tan Seng Hong says a misunderstanding of history can easily cause rumours to spread.
“Some say that my school was a prison, or that it was built on an ancient tribal burial ground,” says the secondary school student.

“But my school is fairly new, and this area has always been a commercial one! Of course, if I believed the stories to be true, I too would feel scared or see things that aren’t really there.”

Permanent residents
As they tend to be located in isolated surroundings, boarding schools are rife with supernatural anecdotes.

One of the most infamous yarns is that of the boy who wakes up in the middle of the night at his dormitory room.

Upon seeing dark shadows hovering along the beds of his fellow students, the boy pulls up his covers and pretends to be asleep.

 

The abandoned Shih Chung school in Penang is supposedly haunted and the abode of different types of ghosts.

The terrified boy then hears a disembodied voice singing: “The rest are asleep, but one is awake.”

Civil servant Shazliza Ramli thinks that such tales are a way of keeping students in check.
“You can be sure that once a student hears a story like that, he is bound to keep to his bedtime,” she laughs.

Shazliza adds that another common “happening” at her former residential school in Kelantan is the doppelganger effect.
“One story I can account for is when a friend of mine had to go home for the weekend due to an injury. 

"But the night warden claimed to have seen my friend wandering around the corridors late at night, and thought she was rude for not answering the warden’s calls."

 

Sightings of apparitions are often spotted along empty corridors and at disrepaired stairwells in schools.

“Upon learning the truth, the warden subesequently refused to do the night shift again; but I think it was an effective caution for the girls, because after that, none of us loittered around at night!” she says.

Residential school student Azfar Masom meanwhile, thinks that his seniors just take sadistic pleasure in scaring the wits out of younger students.
“This is especially true when we have overnight leadership-building or camping events,” says Azfar.

“The students would do things like sneaking up on unsuspecting individuals who dared venture out to answer the call of nature.

“The teachers have more subtle techniques — when doing the head count at the end of the day, they would add an extra person to make it look like we had an unexpected ‘guest’ sharing our tent for the night.”

Tertiary terror
At higher education institutions that are built around dense jungle areas, the old wives’ tale goes that empty buses were sent from the proposed site to the middle of nowhere.

It is said that this was so that bus drivers could transport unwanted spirits to their new “home”, away from the university.
While the sprawling campuses of some local universities appear spacious in broad daylight, taking a nightly stroll in them can be an unnerving experience for even the bravest of souls.

Economics student Sandra Ooi claims that sightings of a lone woman in white are common at her campus in Selangor.
“When my boyfriend came to pick me up one night, he said he saw a girl dressed in white in the distance.

“Thinking it was a student looking for a lift, he slowed down his car — but as he got closer, she disappeared.

“Several of my male classmates have seen this girl while walking back to their dorms,” she says.

In similar vein, Wong Li Ping is certain that she has personally experienced the urban legend of her former private higher education institution in the Klang Valley.
“I saw a person standing on one of the balconies of the hostel block facing mine,” says the sales executive.

“Suddenly the figure leapt down; I thought I had just witnessed a suicide.

“I immediately started to dial the emergency number, but when I glanced up again, I saw the figure standing there as before.”
Li Peng adds that the scene repeated twice, before the figure completely vanished.

Although there is no concrete validity to the relations above, they do reflect the Malaysian appetite for the supernatural.

As Priya Kulasagaran conclude in this writing, "Whether you are a believer or not, the very least these stories do is plant a small seed of doubt when walking down a lonely corridor."