PETALING JAYA, 10 Dec 2008: In light of the latest landslide tragedy at Bukit Antarabangsa in Ampang, the Bar Council has set up a task force to monitor hillslope developments.
Task force chairperson Roger Tan said they would find solutions and offer suggestions to the government on legislation, which would be similar to the ones in Hong Kong.
(Image courtesy of Bar Council)
“So many of its (Hong Kong) high-rise buildings are built on hillslopes but a tragedy like Highland Towers is almost unheard of,” he told The Nut Graph in a phone interview.
Tan added he could only think of two possible reasons why there were no hillslope development tragedies in Hong Kong.
“One, they have a responsible, incorrupt public authority which administers such laws.
“Two, there is strict enforcement of such laws and this includes going after not only errant developers, but also the (responsible) architects and engineers,” he said.
He also said the task force would look at similar legislation in other countries to see if such laws should be adopted in Malaysia.
Tan, who is currently in Brisbane, said urban planning laywer Derek Fernandez would be helping him with the task force.
Fernandez, who is also a Petaling Jaya city councillor, has been fighting for residents protesting against development on the Bukit Gasing hillslope.
Tan plans to recruit architects from the Malaysian Institute of Architects, engineers from the Institution of Engineers and non-governmental organisations who can lend their expertise.
He also said he would speak to Real Estate and Housing Developers Association chairperson Datuk Ng Seing Liong but the task force would need more professionals than developers as they would be looking at the inadequacies of current laws.
“I wish to stress that the intention of the task force is to proffer ideas on how we can avoid a recurrence of such a tragedy.
“It is one of the statutory objects of the Bar to assist any party, including the government, on the effectiveness of any piece of legislation.
“Of course, should the government decide later that a public inquiry be held, my committee and I would be more than pleased to render the necessary assistance,” explained Tan.
Tan, who also chaired the Bar Council’s environment committee, said he agreed with the Malaysian Bar president Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan’s call for the repeal of Section 95 of the Street, Drainage and Building Act 1974.
“This is the problem when the law and judiciary try to insulate public authorities from acts of negligence,” he said.
In a statement yesterday, Ambiga had urged the government to repeal the statutory immunity enjoyed by local authorities and their officers that was provided by the act.
She also called for an immediate public inquiry to investigate the Bukit Antarabangsa tragedy and make recommendations for further action.
Ambiga also said there should be an immediate freeze on all proposed or ongoing hillslope projects and on projects on Class 3 and 4 slopes as implemented by the Selangor government in April 2008.
There must also be public safety announcements on all high-risk areas to advise land-owners and residents, while the National Physical Planning Council should issue immediate directives in relation to planning and hillslope protection, said Ambiga. 
AO says
There are a serious discrepancies in laws concering land development in Malaysia i.e. the Street Drainage and Building Act 1974, the Town and Country Planning Act 1976 as well as the omnipotent Kanun Tanah Negara. I do not agree that local authorities (as the creature of the state authorities), are mainly to be blamed as the state authorities have been blatantly abusing their power in alienation/re-alienation of land processes which gives outright development rights to developers to develop such land. At the same time, I do not think that any local authorities in Malaysia have the capacity in terms of technical know-how in advising developers in developing such land. The Hong Kong practice is highly commendable.
Rabbit says
The Bar Council looks like a busybody. It should look at incidents like why our first PM was a Malay, second PM was not a Chinese and third PM was not an Indian. It must make sure that the wealth of the country is equally distributed and shared by Malaysians. BM is not an international language, but English and Mandarin are, for economic reasons at least, etc.
kah seng says
It is not exactly correct to say landslide in HK is “almost unheard of.”
But it is true that HK improved its regulations and corruption eradication substantially since a string of tragedies in the 1970s.
You can see a dramatized account in the 1980s TV series “Nobel House” based on James Clavell’s book, starring Pierce Brosnan. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noble_House
Here’s a report and quote:
http://ethesis.helsinki.fi/julkaisut/maa/talou/pg/horelli/landslid.pdf
Page 77
“On 18 June 1972 in Sau Mau Ping Estate in Kowloon, a 40m high road embankment collapsed, killing 71 people. This was followed a few hours later by the collapse of the hillside above a steep temporary excavation on Conduit Road in the Mid-Levels area of Hong Kong Island which triggered a landslide that destroyed a 12-storey residential building and killed 67 people. In 1976, another severe rainstorm hit Hong Kong and brought down three fill slopes in Sau Mau Ping Estate again, which were constructed without proper compaction. The resulting landslides killed 18 people.
“The then Governor Sir Murray MacLehose immediately appointed an independent review panel of international experts to study the problem and recommend a solution. The panel recommended the establishment of a control organisation to regulate hillside development and the design, construction and maintenance of slopes. This led to the formation of a government geotechnical control body, the former Geotechnical Control Office (now the GEO), in 1977.”