BUTTERWORTH: The Penang government is still awaiting the full report from the Department of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) before taking action on parties responsible for the Bukit Kukus paired road landslide incident which killed nine foreign workers in October last year.
Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow (pix) said the state government was unable to take any further action against the responsible parties pending the full report of the incident from DOSH.
“As for the Penang Island City Council (MBPP) we take note that there might not be legal responsibility for MBPP because it is actually the victim here, being one of the owners of the project. We also like to stress that we are still waiting for DOSH’s report on any recommendations for further action.
“The MBPP, as the local authority, understand its technical insufficiency in terms of a geotechnical engineer and it has done what it was supposed to do but the failure occurred at the stage that involved the contractors, sub-contractors, consultants and others,” he told reporters after presenting letters of appointment to the Women and Family Development Committee (JPWK) members, here today.
He said this in response to a statement issued by the Consumers’ Association of Penang (CAP) which demanded strong action taken against MBPP and private companies involved in the incident.
On Wednesday, Bukit Kukus Investigation Committee chairman Datuk Ahmad Zakiyuddin Abdul Rahman said that MBPP, Yuta Maju Sdn Bhd, engineering consultant GEA (M) Sdn Bhd and the independent checking engineer G&P Professional Sdn Bhd, were all responsible for the incident.
The landslide which occurred at the site of the Bukit Kukus paired road, owned by the MBPP, on Oct 19 last year killed nine foreign workers and left four others injured, while one more person is still missing.
The paired road project, aimed at connecting Paya Terubong and Relau near here, is expected to be ready by May 2020. — Bernama
