KUALA LUMPUR: Residents caught up in a new development project near the Kampung Bohol flood retention pond said the government needs to heed their plea and preserve the place as it is.
Questions have also been raised on the rationale behind awarding prime land to the housing developer in exchange for the company's promise of deepening the pond for a mere RM40 million.
A group of disgruntled residents said the area was already cramped with buildings and any new housing project would only lead to further congestion and other issues.
Rishi Kumar Vadivelu, 48, a long-time resident, pointed out that the retention pond played a crucial role as a water catchment to prevent an overflow to the downstream areas.
He said the pond area was already neglected with heaps of garbage piling up there.
Preserve Kampung Bohol Flood Retention Pond Coalition coordinator Datuk Ng See Eng said there was a lack of consultation over the project.
He said people were only now finding out that land given to a developer to carry out the housing project was part of the flood retention pond.
Ng said any deepening or upgrading of the pond should have been done by the authorities instead of giving away recreational land.
He pointed out that when the Kesas Highway near the area was built between 1994 and 1996, the flood retention pond lot was designated as a "right of way" for the highway, according to the Land Acquisition Plan before being recognised as a recreational park area.
Ng, who has lived in the area for the past 30 years, said with no rail services, the already nightmarish traffic in the area would also worsen.
"Traffic congestion will worsen in Puchong and Kinrara. We were told at least 5,000 residential units would be built in the area. Where will these people's children go to school? There are no hospitals there. Everyone will just end up in Puchong."
Seputeh member of parliament Teresa Kok, under whose parliamentary constituency the area comes under, also did not mince her words.
"The land should not be sold at all. I disagree with the decision. This is what happens when
decisions are made in an air-conditioned room, without going to the ground."
Kok added that she was not even informed of the decision and that she wasn't involved in the decision-making process.
"I wonder if they even consulted other elected representatives or the Subang Jaya City Council? All the traffic will go to Puchong."
Meanwhile, the Association of Water and Energy Research Malaysia (AWER) also questioned the rationale of getting a private company to deepen the pond in exchange for government land.
Its president, S. Piarapakaran, said any upgrading work on the already-failing pond should be covered by the local authorities, with allocation from the Drainage and Irrigation Department.
"Why engage a developer to do it (pond upgrade)?
"If a developer wants to develop a new settlement, they should be upgrading the drainage and flood retention pond at their own cost.
"Why should it be the other way round now?" he said, referring to reports that the upgrading work on the retention pond would see its capacity increased from 150,000 cubic metres to 1.13 million cubic metres of water, with a minimum depth of six metres.
Save Kuala Lumpur chairman Datuk Mumtaz Ali expressed concern over the manner the whole project was being handled and the lack of transparency involving it.
He said any further development in the area could lead to severe flooding in the locality and surrounding areas.
On the planned public hearing about the project on May 20, Mumtaz said all concerned citizens to attend, voice their objections and demand an end to the destruction of nature.
"We are also appealing to the prime minister to intervene, put a stop to the environmental massacre and direct the relevant agencies to restore the retention ponds to their original purpose," he said.
On Thursday, the NST reported that a housing developer had committed RM40 million to "upgrade" the Kampung Bohol retention pond along the Kesas Highway as part of its winning bid for a housing project tender.
Aside from the requirement to upgrade the retention pond, the developer will also fork out RM41.7 million for the premium of six plots of adjacent land measuring 10.84ha.
The developer was later identified as Platinum Victory Sdn Bhd.
A company official said pending final guidelines, it expects to finalise the project in three months.
Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Minister Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad on Friday told the New Straits Times' 'Beyond the Headlines' programme that more engagement sessions with residents regarding the issue need to be held,
He had acknowledged the lack of engagement with them but notes that efforts to involve the community were increasing.