Wait for SCI findings

The construction site disaster on Saturday was a tragedy that has struck a raw nerve in society. Concerned citizens have voiced out their anxiety – some constructive and some critical.
In the aftermath of tragedies, facts and thorough understanding are needed. We cannot afford to guess and point fingers.
On Sunday, Penang Department of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) director, Rosdee Yaakob affirmed that the landslide was a construction accident. Reiterating this, Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye, who is the chairman of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), said: “The incident was an example of how safety measures were being disregarded at construction sites.”
He said that assessments should have been made immediately, when or if soil erosion had been identified.
The Department of Occupational Safety and Health has identified 16,800 construction sites. Based on the occupational accidents report (as of July 2017), there have been 2,430 accidents and 143 fatalities recorded. Such occupational accidents are most likely due to an almost non-existent safety culture and non-compliance with the Occupational Safety and Health Act.
According to the department, the construction and manufacturing industry accounted for 37% and 22% of all fatal injuries. Under the Act, the construction companies are responsible for ensuring safe practices within sites.
Some citizens and members of civil society have made several hasty conclusion by making sweeping statements like “development at hill land above 250 feet and/or with a slope gradient beyond 25 degrees should not be allowed” thus implying that the Tanjung Bungah development was a hill-slope development and influencing others to believe that the Penang State Government failed to comply with guidelines.
Ir Dr Tan Yean Chin, president of the Malaysian Institution of Engineers, stated that based on observations “the Tanjung Bungah Development was not built on a hill slope, rather on the land adjacent to the hill slope”, thus, debunking the perception that the project was a hill-site development.
The project involved “slopes with a gradient of about 20 degrees” classifying this site as a Category 2 slope (15 to 25 degrees) thus categorising it as a low land and not hill land. Furthermore, the land contour of the project area varies between 18m and 40m, which is well within acceptable limits.
The state government and Penang Island City Council have taken all necessary steps to manage the crisis.
The city council has lodged a police report against the consultant of the affordable housing project and a stop-work order was issued immediately, the building contractor and consultant experts of the project have been blacklisted, and confidential documents have been declassified.
A state commission of inquiry (SCI) has been established and will determine the cause of failure; study and propose improvements to be implemented and recommend just punishment to those found responsible.
Heading the inquiry will be Datuk Yeo Yang Poh, who is the former president of the Malaysian Bar Council, and two other highly esteemed geotechnical experts, Professor Ir Dr Ramli Nazir from UTM and Datuk Ir Dr Gue See Sew.
The public must be made aware that Penang has stricter hill-slope development guidelines compared to the rest of the country and the state government does not allow development on hill land above 76m – the national guideline limit is 300m.
Best for all quarters to refrain from commenting further and allow investigations to be carried out.
Syerleena Abdul Rashid
Penang Island City Councillor