In the heart of Chinatown in Kuala Lumpur, there is a road called Yap Ah Loy Road. In school, we learnt that Yap Ah Loy 葉亞來,the Hakka man who hailed from Guangdong province in southern China became the founder of the Malaysian capital. Yap Ah Loy was the third Kapitan of Kuala Lumpur, the leader of the Chinese community; and some men in the the street in a passing statement stated the third kapitan couldn't possibly be the founder; expecting the first kapitan to be the one, I suppose. A new book with supposedly new evidence; documents, maps, old pictures; however claims that Sutan Puasa, a prominent and influential Mandailing merchant was the actual founder.The history of Kuala Lumpur did not begin until the middle of the 19th century and that probably is not a very long time as far as world history is concerned and obscurity shouldn't have set in. The great-grandson of Yap Ah Loy, James Yap Mook San, said people were free to debate whether Yap was the founder of Kuala Lumpur or not but he said history cannot be changed. It is recorded in history that Kuala Lumpur was beset with many problems, including the Selangor Civil War, diseases, fires and floods during the early years. Kuala Lumpur was destroyed time and again but each time Yap Ah Loy rebuilt the town. Perhaps, this is the reason the third Capitan was credited as the founder of Kuala Lumpur. A true founder probably does not just give a place a name but keeps it viable.
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