THE Penang government has to learn from yesterday’s landslide and put a stop to hillside developments in the state, a civil society group and a DAP assemblyman said.

Fourteen construction workers were buried alive in the landslide in Tanjung Bungah. So far six bodies have been recovered as the search for those still missing continues today.

DAP Tanjung Bungah assemblyman Teh Yee Cheu has always been vocal against hillside development in the state, especially in his constituency that has many areas with hilly and rocky terrain.

The assemblyman said he hoped the unfortunate episode at the construction site on Lorong Lembah Permai 3 would make the state review the Structure Plan to consider Tanjung Bungah’s terrain.

Teh hoped the state would “open its eyes and mind” after this latest tragedy, adding that he will raise the matter at the state legislative assembly next month.

“I had raised concerns about the over-development and hillside projects many times in the state legislative assembly.

“I have said before that if the government allowed such projects, it would have to bear the responsibility should something happen. Of course, the developers also cannot run away.

“We definitely have to raise this issue again in the coming sitting. We need to relook the policies for future development, and to consider reviewing the Structure Plan,” he told The Malaysian Insight.

Six foreign workers are now confirmed dead after their bodies were recovered. Three were Bangladeshis, two Indonesians, and one was Myanmar.

Among those still missing is a Malaysian site supervisor.

Stop hillside developments

Teh said after yesterday’s tragedy, he hoped that those who disagreed with him before, would not laugh at him anymore.

“Now they should not call me crazy anymore,” he said, adding that the northern part of the island, where Tanjung Bungah is located, was an important catchment area for rain and  to prevent flash floods.

“We should not take it for granted,” he said.

Meenaksi Raman, who heads the Tanjung Bungah Residents’ Association (TBRA), said civil society groups also hoped hillside development would be a major topic of debates at the state assembly.

“The state has to stop approving such projects. The attitude now is to just develop.

“The Penang Structure Plan is very clear that development on hills and slopes should be for special projects only. Projects on a hill must be limited and restricted,” she said.

TBRA had been fighting the state administration for years on development issues, namely trying to get the state government to revert Tanjung Bungah’s classification to its original Secondary Development Corridor Zone.

As a secondary corridor, the maximum density is 15 units per acre, compared with the Primary Development Corridor Zone that allows a much higher density of 75 units per acre.

Meenakshi said Tanjung Bungah was stated as a secondary corridor under the Structure Plan, but illustrations had shown it as a primary corridor.

“From the time of the previous state government, this has been ignored. The Structure Plan was not followed. We are fighting this and will hold the state accountable.

“There had been so many developments along the coast that they have gone for the hills…simply opening land. Enough is enough,” she said.

Meenakshi said civil society groups have made repeated calls to the state government to stop developments on hillside, including sending letters to assemblymen, MPs and Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng.

Recently, she said they highlighted concerns that floods in Penang were worsening because of hillside developments.

TBRA will today join the other groups that make up Penang Forum at a press conference on the landslide.

Barisan Nasional’s Pulau Betong assemblyman Muhammad Farid Saad is also holding a press conference today at the site to talk about the disaster and a motion he will table in the coming state legislative assembly.

On October 29, TBRA will also have a dialogue with elected Penang reps to explain the causes of floods and landslides, and over-development issues.

Long, dark night

Meanwhile, search and rescue workers worked through the night to recover the bodies of the landslide victims at the Tanjung Bungah construction site.

The operation had been halted to be resumed this morning but the search teams decided to plough on overnight instead.

“We owe it to the families. We are sad too,” said Damanhuri, a fireman on the the search and rescue team.

He said that he, being a family man, understood how the loved ones of the victims must feel, and that fuelled him to work harder at his task.

“It is tiring, but I have put that aside and am continuing to search,” said Damanhuri, whose shift began at 10pm last night and would end at 8am today.

“All of us have been working non-stop;  we feel the pain of the families.”

Jasni said he had not encountered a landslide that had claimed as many victims in the 25 years he had been a fireman in Penang.

“We rarely have this kind of accidents; pity the families, usually, you have one or two people to save, but this accident, the victims are so many. Of course, we take it differently,” he said.

He said regardless of nationality, the victims deserved to go back to their families.

“We are a multiracial nation, if we can’t show that we care for other nationalities, what more for fellow Malaysians?”

Law enforcement personnel patrolled the area overnight to prevent entry to the site, which is still marked dangerous.

Families of the victims wait on the sidelines in hope of news that their loved ones have been found.

According to the developer, the workers trapped in the landslide were working on soil-nailing to shore up a temporary slope at the site when the incident occurred.

Taman Sri Bunga Sdn Bhd, a unit of BSG Property, a major Penang-based development firm, expressed “deep regret” over the incident.

The Penang chief minister said he would propose for an inquiry into the disaster to learn the cause and how to prevent its recurrence.

The Penang Island City Council has issued a stop-work order for the project to build 50-storeys of affordable apartments. – October 22, 2017.