Despite being near urban centres, Kampung Pasir still retains its rural appeal
MENTION Kampung Pasir to Johor Baru residents, chances are many will be guessing it to be somewhere in the rural areas of the state.
However, reference Kampung Pasir with the Tampoi township, along with the fifth and sixth mile of Jalan Skudai, and it will ring a bell with many of the city folk.
For the longest time, this urban village has been a popular area for people of all walks of life as the place is filled with food stalls, workshops and all kinds of specialised services.
Visitors to the area will be greeted by roads and lanes which have been named after fruits. Among the main ones are Lorong Manggis, Lorong Nangka and also Lorong Pisang. The roads are interconnected with the main ones such as Jalan Dato' Mohd Said.
Spanning over 3.2 kilometres along the busy Jalan Skudai, and surrounded by main residential and commercial areas, Kampung Pasir has also been a landmark for those familiar with the Johor Baru North district.
According to narrated history, Kampung Pasir was established before the 1940s, and the named stemmed from the area having a lot of sand, thus the name "pasir".
Many of the homes here have also changed to suit the times with the traditional wooden houses being rebuilt as modern bungalows and also linked homes.
Over the past two to three decades, the village has also been associated with the late Umno veteran, Tan Sri Mohamed Rahmat, who once resided in the area after his family moved from Kampung Mohd Amin.
The former information minister who was also Umno secretary-general had made it a point to develop Kampung Pasir. Among the famous community projects undertaken by him was the Tan Sri Mohamed Rahmat Complex which started off as a plot of land bought by Rahmat in 1973.
At present, the complex, which is located along the slip road to Pengkalan Rinting and next to the Tampoi police station and the Region 2 Marine Operations Force headquarters, houses a multipurpose hall, Pulai Umno gallery and also a futsal arena.
Long-time resident and current traditional masseur, Ishak Ahmad, said he has stayed in Kampung Pasir since his early teens when his parents moved to Johor Baru from Muar in 1954.
"It was 57 years ago when I moved here with my family. At that time there were only 10 houses which were far apart and most of the occupants were working for the state government," said the 72-year-old retired fireman.
Ishak, fondly called Pak Sahak by residents, said the busy areas in the village concentrated mainly around the main Jalan Skudai road where the current bus stand and mosque stood. Originally, he said, Kampung Pasir only had Lorong Satu, Lorong Dua, Lorong Tiga and Lorong Empat.
"This changed in the 1970s when the then-town council made the decision to introduce the names of fruits as the village grew over time," said Pak Sahak, adding that many other people came to settle here from other parts of Johor namely Muar, Kluang and Batu Pahat
He said Kampung Pasir now houses more than a thousand residents as it is among one of the largest and most developed traditional Malay settlements in Johor Baru.
Johor Baru city councillor and former resident, Rashid Kasman, said Kampung Pasir is a unique village as it is an organised traditional Malay settlement situated within an urban environment.
"Many residents here still practise aspects of the 'old ways' that are associated with traditional Malay community like gotong-royong and having thanksgiving events among neighbours,"he said.
Rashid, a former born-and-bred Kampung Pasir resident, said the community spirit among the village residents is still strong here and many are proud of this.
A younger resident Raffi Jaffar, 35, said that he was very comfortable living in Kampung Pasir as he was born and brought-up here. The motorcycle workshop proprietor added that the location of his home was also a key factor as it is strategically located, being less than 10 kilometres from the city centre.
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