Nazri signs petition to save ashram

KUALA LUMPUR: The bid to save the Vivekananda Ashrama in Brickfields received a major boost today when Tourism and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz turned up at the iconis building to sign a petition to save it.
Brickfields Community Society (BCS) chairman G. Gunasegaran said Nazri's visit took everyone by surprise as he came unannounced.
"He walked around the ashram premises to check its condition after signing the petition," Gunasegaran added.
Earlier, PKR's youth wing Angkatan Muda Keadilan (AMK) joined the movement to stop the move to re-develop the iconic building.
"DBKL (Kuala Lumpur City Hall) needs to clarify its rules and standing on heritage buildings," said PKR Lembah Pantai Youth chief Fahmi Fadzil at a press conference at the party's headquarters today.
He said the board of trustees should engage with all concerned, including NGOs, residents, stakeholders and political parties from both sides to find a holistic solution to the controversy.
They are urging the Federal Territories Ministry and City Hall not to wash their hands off this matter as it falls under their jurisdiction.
AMK also labelled the statement by Federal Territories Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor on the government "being powerless" over this issue as irresponsible.
Fahmi pointed out that Section 67 (1) of the National Heritage Act 2005 clearly states that the minister may by order published in the gazette, declare any heritage site/object as a national heritage.
The AMK will also be attending the march to save the ashram on Sunday.
The Malaysian Associated Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MAICCI) has also demanded that the redevelopment plan be shelved immediately.
MAICCI president Tan Sri KK Eswaran urged the FT minister to do everything in his power so that the building is preserved.
All objections to the redevelopment plan must be submitted to City Hall by Nov 11 after which City Hall will act accordingly.
The Save Vivekananda Ashram Action Committee has already garnered over 20,000 written and online petitions thus far and the number is growing.
The online petition can be found at www.saveashram.com.
Nazri on Tuesday said the ashram's board of trustees had rejected a government offer in 2008 to gazette the building as a heritage site.
Meanwhile, Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) chairman P. Waytha Moorthy also urged Nazri to invoke his powers under Section 67 (1) of the Act to declare the ashram as a heritage building.
"The Vivekananda Ashrama fits all categories stipulated in the Act to qualify as a national heritage," he said.