MAKE PUBLIC STATE ACTION PLAN ON PAIRED ROAD PROJECTS

Press Release                                                                29 December 2017

MAKE PUBLIC STATE ACTION PLAN ON PAIRED ROAD PROJECTS

The Tanjung Bungah Residents Association (TBRA) deeply regrets the approval by the Department of Environment (DOE) of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for the three paired road projects on 10 November this year.

TBRA has learnt about this from the Consumers’ Association of Penang (CAP) who were informed about the EIA approval by the DOE.We also have learnt that the Penang State Government was required by the DOE to submit an ‘Action Plan’ based on all the issues raised by the public, prior to the EIA approval and this was complied with by the State.

TBRA therefore calls on the Penang State Government to make public the Action Plan so that we can assess if our concerns have been addressed effectively.

We also want to know if the Action Plan has addressed concerns arising from the most recent floods and landslides that occurred on November 5 this year and whether and how this has been taken into account in the construction of the roads.

TBRA had raised our concerns regarding the North Coastal Paired Road (NCPR) from Teluk Bahang to Tanjung Bungah both to the DOE and the Penang State Government. 

TBRA had pointed out serious environmental and social impacts of the NCPR especially for thousands of residents living along the road alignment.

What is even more disturbing is the fact that the heavy rains that resulted in the Nov 5 landslides and floods involve parts of the areas along the proposed NCPR road alignment in TanjungBungah.

The EIA had revealed that about 46% of the proposed road will be on terrain with a higher than 25 degree slope, are well known to be ‘sensitive hill lands.’

How and whether the Penang State Government and the DOE have addressed this concern remains a mystery to us.

TBRA had appealed to the DOE to reject the EIA and had called on the Penang Government to have a dialogue session with all residents along the road alignment of the to explain the full details of the road and seek their feedback.

We deeply regret that our calls and concerns have thus far not been met by either the DOE or the State Government.

Now that the State has provided an Action Plan to the DOE, it is vital for this to be made public urgently and to seek public feedback, as this will be in line with the spirit of the State Government being transparent and accountable to the people of Penang.

TBRA also pointed out and continues to maintain that the ‘saving’ of 14 minutes of time travelled between Tanjung Bungah and Teluk Bahang at a cost of RM 1 billion for the NCPR will soon vanish once more traffic demand is generated by the new road in the coming years.

What has also not been made clear how the State is going to disperse the traffic from the NCPR that ends in Lembah Permai inTanjung Bungah to Straits Quay.

It therefore incumbent on and imperative for the State Government to be fully transparent on the need for the NCPR, the implications of this to the residents affected by the road, what alternatives were considered and deemed not feasible and how the Action Plan addresses all the concerns of the public.

Meenakshi Raman

Chairperson,

Tanjung Bungah Residents Association

From a Young Heart Planting Trees on 11/11 Remembering 11 Landslide Victims

Maverick DAP rep asks why party impatient to get rid of him

Susan Loone, 16 Dec 2017

Maverick DAP Tanjung Bungah assemblyperson Teh Yee Cheu broke his silence and questioned why his party was apparently impatient to get rid of him by barring him from being involved in flood aid in his state constituency.

Teh said he has not joined another political party and is still a DAP member and assemblyperson.

"Why can't you (DAP leaders) be patient? You are showing your impatience to get rid of me. It really shows the kind of mindset they have," Teh told Malaysiakini when met at his service centre in Tanjung Bungah.

Teh expressed disappointment that a senior DAP leader ran him down in the state newsletter Buletin Mutiara.

"Now you condemn me and say bad things about me. Aren't you just playing politics?" he asked.

"You say I might be a risk. What kind of risk do I pose? You mean I can sabotage the whole thing? How can I do that?

"If I want to sabotage (DAP), I do not need to announce in advance that I want to leave the party."

‘We don’t take risk’

On Dec 14, DAP Bukit Bendera MP Zairil Khir Johari revealed that Teh was barred from approving the registration of flood victims which will entitle them to receive the state's RM700 in financial aid.

The aid is part of Penang's Bangkit Programme which was launched by Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng following the devastating floods from a freak storm last month.

On why the two-term elected representative was barred, Zairil (photo) said this was due to Teh issuing a few negative statements to the press.

"He had publicly announced that he’s leaving DAP and that also means he's leaving the Pakatan Harapan state government. So, when there's uncertainty, do you take the risk?" Zairil was quoted as saying in Buletin Mutiara.

He said the e-mail on the Penang government’s decision was sent to Teh by state secretary Farizan Darus on Nov 20.

Zairil is currently handling the task of approving flood aid to victims in Tanjung Bungah.

According to Teh, the party was merely seeking publicity in handing out vouchers to victims of the Nov 4 and 5 floods, which displaced thousands and killed seven.

"Why not credit the money into the people's bank accounts? Why the need to give vouchers, take photograph and get publicity? Isn't this playing politics with the flood disaster?" he asked.

Teh is the second assemblyperson barred from handling the flood registration after a similar fate befell PKR Kebun Bunga representative Cheah Kah Peng (photo).

The task is currently being handled by Pulau Tikus assemblywoman Yap Soo Huey.

Cheah and Teh have often irked their party comrades by questioning the state's environmental policies, especially hillslope development, sea reclamation projects and recently, the corporatisation of the Penang Botanical Gardens.

'Narrow-minded'

Meanwhile, Teh denied that he was planning to contest against the Harapan government in the coming 14th national polls, which must be held by August next year.

Speculation is rife that Teh may jump ship and join the newly minted Penang Front Party, now a major critic of DAP and Lim's administration.

It is also rumoured that Teh may run as an independent candidate in the next polls.

"This is not true. Whether it is a multiple-cornered or straight fight, it is all up to the voters' decision. How can you say that I want to fight the Harapan government?

"During the polls, Penang is no longer under any particular party, the mandate of the state government is over," Teh explained. "To think that I am going to contest against Harapan is being narrow-minded."

However, Teh confirmed he would be leaving DAP - a decision he announced after a major landslide in Tanjung Bungah killed 11 people on Oct 21.

Teh said he will decide which platform he would use to continue his political struggle when the parliament and state assembly are dissolved.

"Be fair to me, give me some room to move, (and) to continue my work," he said.

On which platform he would be seeking, Teh replied, "I do not have much choice. But this is not for me to decide now."

"Certain quarters may say I have been approached by some rival parties and that I have betrayed the DAP, but these arguments are merely used to run me down," he said.

"I may retire or join NGOs, I do not know at this point in time."

https://www.malaysiakini.com/news/405640

Paya Terubong's Hillside Development Complaints Sound Strikingly Familiar ...

Paya Terubong residents have been struggling for years against complaints that today sound familiar to Tanjung Bungah residents.

See this 15-minute video from August 2016. It lists a litany of problems related to the poor governance of hillside developments: Hill cutting, unstable slope and potential collapse, highrise next to slope, lack of consultation with nearby residents, ineffective stop-work orders, muddy run off on streets and houses, filling up flood mitigation ponds, flash flood, water retention and mosquitoes, noise and dust pollution, illegal and dangerous rock blasting, report to MACC, "upgrade" of low-density to high-density project by the present state government, MBPP approval without giving reasons, illegal worker settlement, burglaries and robberies, effective 10-feet setbacks for 330-ft buildings, falling construction debris, ...

More at: NO to Paya Terubong HILL Development https://www.facebook.com/hillrape/

7-minute, drone video of Berverly Hills project, Tanjung Bungah, from Nov 6

Here is a very clear, 7-minute, drone video of Berverly Hills project, Tanjung Bungah, from Nov 6, the day after the collapse of the retaining wall. This is behind Surin and Straits Regency. The views include the back area and the hill behind the houses.

Know the river basins of Penang Island. Know that these have to be protected

Is it coincidence to see upstream hillside development and downstream flooding with "teh-tarik" yellow muddy water?

From Penang Forum
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