THERE were no issues of loose soil or steep slopes in the fatal Bukit Kukus landslide last month that killed nine foreign workers, Penang local government exco Jagdeep Singh Deo said.

He told the state assembly this morning that the site where the incident happened was a road constructed for lorries to use for the building of the Bukit Kukus pair road project.

“The loose soil issue does not arise. It is also not a steep hill slope.

“Don’t jump to conclusions. The state special committee is still probing the cause of the incident. So are other agencies like DOSH (Occupational Safety and Health Department) and the police.

“If anyone has failed to follow guidelines or regulations, stern action will be taken. The state will make sure of it,” he told opposition leader Muhamad Yusoff Mohd Noor (BN-Sungai Dua) during question time.

Following the incident last month, Habibah Lateh, a landslide expert from Universiti Sains Malaysia reportedly observed that sandy soil that was loose had been used in the Bukit Kukus road project.

But the project’s consulting engineer GEA (M) Sdn Bhd said Habibah’s comments were “inaccurate” as she did not have prior information of the testing and intent of the works at the site.

Jagdeep also reiterated today that the pair road project in Paya Terubong will continue, as it was a public infrastructure for the benefit of the people.

“With the huge mandate awarded to the state government in the 14th general election, we will continue with the project, but I agree with Sungai Dua (Yusoff) that we need more measures to ensure safety at work sites.”

Jagdeep said Penang has strict hill slope development guidelines that prohibit projects on hill land over 76m above sea level and on 25 degree slopes.

Citing last year’s Granito apartment project landslide in Tanjung Bungah that killed 11 workers, he said the state government was accused of allowing projects on hill land exceeding 76m above sea level and on 25 degree slopes.

“As I have said before, maybe some parts are above 76m. But we do not allow building footprints on hill land over 76m above sea level and over 25 degree slopes.

“This is Penang. That is the guideline. (Elsewhere) in Malaysia, there are projects built 300m above the sea level,” he said.

“The controls are also stated in the Penang Structure Plan, which almost has the force of the law, if not the force of the law. We have to comply.”

Based on today’s engineering advancements, Jagdeep said it was possible to build on hill land above 76m, citing Hong Kong where multistory buildings had been built even on hill peaks.

But he said Penang would follow its existing guidelines, which he had even promoted to federal agencies recently.

He said after Putrajaya amended the Building, Streets, and Drainage Act to require qualified inspectors to validate geotechnical reports for projects on slopes of 25 degrees and higher than 10m, he told the federal government that the amendment would not be applicable in Penang.

“That is because we already ban projects on slopes over 25 degrees. I have asked Putrajaya to standardise the national law based on what Penang has done,” he said. – November 13, 2018.