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  Straits Times 7 Apr 07
Though dangerous, illegal jetty an avenue to rare simple pleasures
Letter from Derrick Wong Kum Yau

THE front page pictures showed adults and children having a family bonding adventure ( 'Jetty shut down'; ST, April 2).

The scene is a natural raw getaway from our concrete jungle. Such rare places would be like heaven for adventurous people who enjoy the outdoors. There were ropes, slopes, a boat and a kelong for fishing in such a serene setting.

Can't we see we have all these ingredients for a healthy inexpensive adventure in our own tiny land? I am sure our children can benefit very much from a single outing like this.

We don't need to wait for the integrated resorts to enjoy legalised outings. We don't want to go to an authorised cruise centre to take a boat ride overseas, when we can have such amenities that are uniquely ours to enjoy.

The authorities - the police, Maritime and Ports Authority, Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority, and National Parks Board - should poll their ideas together to make it possible for our children to experience such activities in their homeland.

Yes, it is the authorities that made it possible for us to enjoy visits to vegetable farms, have farmstays, boating in reservoirs and now canals. Such activities were never allowed before but are now possible.

The reader who took the pictures and reportedly said that it was dangerous for the passengers to jump in and out of the boat has missed another activity that is more dangerous.

Let me point out that people with cellphones in hand who cross the road like zombies, oblivious to oncoming traffic, also risk stepping in a pothole while taking pictures outdoors. Now, that is dangerous.
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