SHAH ALAM (Aug 27, 2008) : The Selangor government will not back down from its policy on hillslope development. Mentri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim gave this assurance today after a meeting with developers, residents associations and non-governmental organisations.
He said that while the state government was receptive to dialogues with developers over the blanket ban on Classes 3 and 4 development — hillslopes of 25° and above — it will not budge from the policy which was intended to protect sensitive landscapes and preserve green lungs and catchment areas.
“We do not intend to change our policy but we will listen to their views,” he told a press conference after the two-and-a-half-hour meeting that was attended by about 150 stakeholders.
“Besides that, we also want to convince the people that development issues in their areas are a primary concern for us,” he said.
He dismissed criticisms that the announcement of the policy four months ago was hastily done, saying: “We had discussions with developers and NGOs individually but never together and on a large-scale as in today.”
He also said it was not true that developers approached state exco members to lobby the state government to rescind the policy.
On the 141 hillslope projects approved by the previous government that his administration had allowed to proceed, the mentri besar said these too were subject to a detailed study. “If they were not approved according to guidelines and their legality is suspect, we will withdraw the approval,” he said.
Abdul Khalid, who chaired the meeting, said that while the state government was business-friendly and wanted developers to make profits, it wanted the community to be confident of the development and support these projects.
“We are open to suggestions from developers but they must relate to sustainable development,” he said, reminding developers to come better prepared to convince the people who were a discerning lot.
“You are dealing with a different kettle of fish,” he said, in reference to the developers’ arguments which were torn apart by residents and NGOs.
Khalid meeting with representatives of developers, residents
associations and non-governmental organisations.
They had particularly taken issue with the arguments of Bukit Kiara Properties group chairman Datuk Alan Tong that Malaysia should emulate Hongkong, Melbourne and Acapulco which build on hillslopes.
“We have the technology to embark on sustainable, safe hillside development,” he said, drawing a retort from tourism, consumer affairs and environment exco Elizabeth Wong, who said “with the likes of Melbourne, Australia’s strict environment policy ensures that green areas are protected and the government operates transparently”.
“… as opposed to Malaysia where we have a very poor maintenance culture for the environment,” she said, adding that the obsession with hillside development was unjustified as there were large parcels of other land to develop.
Global Environment Centre director Faisal Parish said geological factors in Hongkong were different from Malaysia and the Hongkong government had also banned hillslope development in certain areas.
He suggested that if developers were so confident of the “new technologies”, they would have no qualms about paying a deposit to the state government which could be used for remedial works and to compensate victims in case of a landslide.
Real Estate and Housing Developers Association (Rehda) president Datuk Ng Seing Liong, who came with the backing of the Institute of Architects Malaysia, said one should be rational in assessing the merits of hillslope development.
“We share the (same) concerns of the residents. In fact Rehda’s tagline is Sustainable Development,” he said, adding that one should not regard all developers as unscrupulous and merely profit-minded.
Other than Wong, the other exco who spoke up against the reversal of the policy was Seri Andalas assemblyman Dr Xavier Jayakumar who is in charge of health, plantation workers’ welfare, poverty eradication and good governance.
“We must remember this is the new government. We must do away with old practices and ensure that in all decisions taken, the public interest is paramount,” he said.