AS the Penang government continues to face criticism over hill land developments, the administration today told Putrajaya to have a uniform guideline nationwide.

Penang housing exco Jagdeep Singh Deo said Putrajaya should set the limit for hill land developments at 76m above sea level and 25 degree gradient.

That is the limit followed by the Penang Pakatan Harapan government. 

The national guidelines by the federal government allow all types of development on hill land up to 300m above sea level.

“For the federal government to show sincerity in dealing with hill land development issues, Penang would like to suggest it reviews its 300m limit policy. Reduce it to 76m like what is observed in the state,” Jagdeep told a press conference in Komtar today.

Penang was recently criticised by the Natural Resources and Environment Ministry for “lacking oversight” when a landslide happened at a construction site in Lembah Permai, Tanjung Bungah, killing 10 foreign workers and a Malaysian site supervisor.

The ministry took the state to task for allowing a private developer to build a 50-storey affordable housing project at the site, despite the Environmental Department (DoE) rejecting the developer’s planning permission application as it was near a permanent quarry.

The state government responded the department had no qualms giving the nod to two projects in the same area in 2008 despite them being closer to the quarry.

On calls to the Penang government to stop all developments on hills, Jagdeep said the administration was following the policy of not approving projects on hill land higher than 76m above sea level.

He reiterated that since the opposition took over Penang in 2008, the administration had rejected 11 private developers’ projects on land higher than 76m above sea level.

Two proposed federal projects under the federal programme 1Malaysia Civil Servant Housing, he said, were also rejected.

Jagdeep said on the contrary, the previous Barisan Nasional government approved 28 high-rise housing schemes on land higher than 76m above sea level from 1985 to 2008.

However, Penang BN chief Teng Chang Yeow in a statement today disputed Jagdeep’s assertion the PH administration would not allow such projects.

“The state local government exco (Chow Kon Yeow) in a reply at the state legislative assembly in November 2015 clearly said there are 56 projects above 76m were approved by MBPP (Penang Island City Council) since 2008! 

“MBPP is an agency under the State Government of Penang,” he said.

Teng also argued the Penang government and local council should had considered DoE’s rejection of the developer’s planning permission application two years ago.

“The fact remains the state government and MBPP ignored the objection from DoE, whose expertise is most crucial to any such development.   

“They are trying to fool the people by justifying the approval of two previous projects which had received approval from DoE, as basis to approve the ill-fated project. 

“Regrettably, the state government and MBPP have also concealed the fact and duly informed the people the guidelines and regulations on environment in Penang have been tightened over the years, and the previous two projects were probably approved under different rules and regulations available at that point in time,” he said.

Earlier today, Penang Gerakan also highlighted concerns of Taman Lau Geok Swee residents about an apartment project on a hill slope in their neighbourhood.

The project in Paya Terubong consist of three 47-storey apartment blocks and one 41-storey block.

Penang Gerakan vice chairman Oh Tong Keong said following the land slide in Lembah Permai, the state government should consider the safety of hill slope projects.

“The people at Taman Lau Geok Swee are worried because there was a landslide near their homes in July this year,” he said, adding the residents had submitted their objections against the project in November 2015. – October 25, 2017.