Rezoning row raises questions on stewardship

THE more than two-decades saga of Vivekananda Ashram in Brickfields offers a timely opportunity to reflect on the principle of stewardship.
Its key application in governance is that stewards are entrusted to discharge responsibilities in an accountable and transparent manner.
Officials exercise power on behalf of an entity; they are custodians of its resources and not owners.
This trust must extend to all stakeholders – not just shareholders or members – but also to the broader community with a legitimate interest.
According to a report in StarMetro on May 26, 2025, Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) said the landowners of the 120-year-old Vivekananda Ashram had requested its site be zoned as 'main commercial'.
With the Kuala Lumpur Local Plan 2040 (KLLP 2040) now gazetted and due to come into force on June 11, the key players involved in the ashram's rezoning must reflect on the cardinal principle of stewardship.
The Vivekananda Ashrama Kuala Lumpur was incorporated as a Company Limited by Guarantee in 1934.
Its core mission is described as 'involved in educational, spiritual, cultural and welfare activities'.
There had been public appeals to rezone the site for educational and welfare use – appeals entirely in line with the organisation's stated purpose.
The board of trustees' 2014 plan to build a 23-storey tower over the heritage site triggered public backlash and led to the building's heritage gazettement in 2016.
The fact that this gazettement was challenged by the trustees and that they have now accepted 'main commercial' zoning speaks volumes.
Even so, the ashram remains a cherished institution with deep intergenerational significance to the wider community.
The 876 objections submitted from across the country and abroad, as well as the high participation in the public hearing, reflect this.
DBKL's decision to rezone the 0.4ha heritage site is surprising.
The agency had access to detailed presentations during the public hearing and subsequent submissions from the Save Vivekananda Ashram Brickfields community.
Yet, it appears to have treated the board as just another landowner, without weighing the broader implications of its stewardship responsibilities.
Was the entire community engagement process merely a performative exercise?
It would be a welcome surprise if DBKL reconsidered its decision and rezoned the site as 'public facilities' before June 11.
Is that too much to ask of those who govern a 'City for All'?
The community must continue playing its stewardship role. Section 17 of the Federal Territory (Planning) Act 1982 [Act 267] provides a mechanism to alter the gazetted KLLP 2040.
This avenue remains open for the board to submit an application to rezone the site as 'Public Facilities'.
Meanwhile, the community must remain vigilant.
Any proposed commercial development should be monitored to ensure full compliance with National Heritage Department guidelines and that all necessary approvals are obtained.
At a minimum, the trustees should share their plans and adopt a more inclusive stewardship model.
No matter how dwarfed the ashram may become by future soulless structures, its legacy as a monument to the contributions of Malaysia's pioneer generation will endure.
Jayanath Appudurai
Kuala Lumpur

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