Underperforming cleaning contractors will be terminated, says MPKj

The Star, Thursday February 28, 2013

By OH ING YEEN
ingyeen@thestar.com.my

SINCE February last year, the Kajang Municipal Council (MPKj) has terminated five out of 67 public cleaning contractors and seven out of 47 waste collection contractors.

At the council’s monthly public complaints monitoring meeting on Tuesday, MPKj president Datuk Hassan Nawawi Abdul Rahman said it was a case of “three strikes and you’re out”.

“They are given 10 hours to rectify the problem in their zones. Under-performing contractors will get a ‘notice to correct’ (NTC) and their services will be terminated after the third NTC,” he said.

He added that contractors were also required to erect two signboards bearing their contact details and waste collection schedules. However, only four out of 47 contractors had complied so far.

Taking matters into its own hands, the council will erect the signboards and the cost will be deducted from the contractors’ fees.

“To prevent perpetrators from placing advertisements illegally, the signboards will be constructed at 2.13m in height,” he said.

The use of non-stick paint on signboards to curb the illegal placement of advertisement stickers has been stopped as the cost is too high.

“We have spent RM36,000 so far. The problem has lessened but we are still unable to solve the problem 100%,” he said.

Councillor Lee Learn Eng highlighted the lack of public cleaning work from Jalan Wan Siew to Section 7, Bandar Baru Bangi and from Jalan Pasir Emas to Apartment Sri Ros.

“To my knowledge, the contractors’ payments have been reduced, and this signifies their poor performance,” he said.

According to the council’s monthly report, it had solved 1,084 complaints of the 1,614 received. Complaints on roads topped the list, followed by faulty street lights and rubbish.

The council has also received 119 complaints on stray dogs and one on crows.

Logging, sand mining and rubbish dumping go unchecked in Kg Pasir

The Star, Thursday February 28, 2013

By STUART MICHAEL
metro@thestar.com.my
Photos by S.S KANESAN

Raped: Trees that are cut down are transported out of the illegal logging site near the Batangsi waterfalls.

 

THREE illegal operations — logging, sand mining and rubbish dumping — are being carried out by one operator in Kampung Pasir, Semenyih for the last several months.

 

 

The operator, who is believed to be a thug in the village, has even threatened and forced a landowner out of his land in order to mine sand.

All three illegal activities are being conducted on a 33ha site in the village, which is visible from the hilltop at Nirvana Memorial Garden in Semenyih.

The illegal dumping and sand mining sites are located on a 5ha land near Batu 18, Jalan Sungai Lalang, while logging activities are going on in a forest some 3km away.

Stern action against scrap metal operator

The Star, Tuesday February 26, 2013

By SCOTT LEE
metro@thestar.com.my

Taking them away: Enforcement officers confiscating waste disposal bins at a scrap metal centre in Taman Ehsan Impian.

 

RECYCLING is highly promoted as long as it was done in a proper way, so last week Kajang Municipal Council (MPKj) councillor Eddie Ng Tien Chee sent out an enforcement team to confiscate three waste disposal bins from a scrap metal operator in Taman Ehsan Impian.

Ng said according to the state government, all the scrap metal centres must only be allowed in industrial areas.

In this case, he said the operator rented only one lot in Jalan Desa Ria 9 but had stored scrap metal by the roadside and on a piece of vacant land belonging to the government.

“The land was allocated for either a surau or hawker stalls,” said Ng.

However, he said the Selangor Islamic Depart-ment did not want to build a surau there anymore because the site was no longer suitable.

“The air is filled with stench from rubbish thrown by business operators and it has become a breeding place for mosquitoes,” he added.

Ng said the mounds of rubbish at the illegal dumpsite had caught fire last year and the blaze almost spread to nearby shoplots.

“MPKj confiscated one of the waste disposal bins from the scrap metal operator two days before Chinese New Year.

“The operator promised to clear the place but nothing much has been done to-date. Hence, the council is taking away these bins now,” he said.

He added that the scrap metal operator was moving to Taming Industrial Park by this Sunday and the bins would be returned after paying a fine of RM1,000 for each bin, provided that MPKj was satisfied with the clean-up at the current site.

MPKj enforcement director Shariman Mohd Nor said the council would give the operator four days to clean up the piece of government land or it would be barred from retrieving its scrap metal.

Kajang Mewah residents want a way to avoid crawl in Jalan Semenyih

The Star, Wednesday February 6, 2013

By FARAH FAZANNA ZULZAHA
farahfazanna@thestar.com.my
Photos by ROHAIZAT DARUS

Inconvenient: Kajang Mewah residents currently have to drive 5km after the Bukit Kajang toll plaza to enter their neighbourhood.

 

RESIDENTS of Kajang Mewah want the access into their neighbourhood to be built immediately after the Bukit Kajang toll plaza, instead of via Jalan Semenyih.

Serdang parliamentary liaison officer Datuk Yap Pian Hon said he had received many complaints from residents since the highway opened in 2004.

“Motorists who want to go to Kajang Mewah and its surrounding neighbourhoods have to drive at least 5km and pass through five traffic light junctions along Jalan Semenyih. This causes traffic congestion and it defeats the purpose of building the Kajang Silk Highway,” he said during a press conference recently.

Find a solution: Yap showing a map of the long route currently used by Kajang Mewah residents.

 

According to Yap, road users had to pay RM1 each at the Sungai Ramal and Bukit Kajang toll plazas.

“I have spoken to some of the residents and they do not mind paying the RM1 toll, but they wished that they did not have to drive all the way to Jalan Semenyih when an entrance can be created right after the toll plaza,” he said.

He added that there was, however, an exit from Kajang Mewah into Silk Highway.

“This is why the residents are questioning. If there can be an exit from Kajang Mewah, why can’t there be an entrance as well?”

Yap said he had met with Works Ministry officers and highway concessionaire Silk Hol-dings Berhad, and hoped for a solution soon.

“A reasonable solution can be achieved so that residents can enjoy the convenience of the highway.”

Yap said the highway company’s main concern was that road users would cut through Kajang Mewah and avoid paying RM1 at the Bukit Kajang toll plaza to go to Semenyih if an entrance was built.

“Logically, road users will not want to be caught in the traffic congestion in Jalan Semenyih. Personally, I would rather pay RM1, where it would only take 10 minutes to reach Semenyih, instead of being stuck in traffic for almost an hour,” he said, adding that it would be a win-win situation for road users and Silk.

The neighbourhoods currently affected are Taman Zamrud, Bukit Mutiara, Taman Bukit Mewah 6 and 7, Taman Bukit Ria, Taman Jasmin and Kajang Prima, which collectively have more than 20,000 residents.

At the press conference, Yap also announced that the underpass project in Kajang Utama had been approved by the Works Ministry and the project was under way.

“A seven-member committee, headed by me, will monitor, the project’s progress,” he added.

Residents suggest shorter waiting times and new interchange to lessen congestion

The Star, Tuesday February 5, 2013

Story and photo by OH ING YEEN
ingyeen@thestar.com.my

Solution at hand: A shorter waiting time at traffic lights and a new interchange are the two proposals aimed at easing congestion at the busy junction of Persiaran Bandar Mahkota Cheras 1 and the Grand Saga Highway.

 

A SHORTER waiting time at traffic lights and a new interchange are two proposals aimed to ease congestion at the busy junction of Persiaran Bandar Mahkota Cheras 1 and the Grand Saga Highway.

The long-standing issue has yet to be solved despite numerous complaints over the years by residents and business owners in Bandar Mahkota Cheras that are affected by the jam.

Bandar Mahkota Cheras Section 9 Rukun Tetangga chairman John Lee said, “A detailed plan is needed to alleviate the jam.”

Kajang Municipal Council (MPKj) councillors have also held several press conferences regarding this issue (“Residents seeing red over congestion issue”, June 7, 2012).

At a press conference at the site yesterday, Dusun Tua assemblyman, Ismail Sani, announced the two plans to ease congestion.

“The short-term plan is to lessen waiting time from a total of four minutes to two minutes.

“If a new interchange is implemented, there will be a smoother flow of traffic by the end of this year,” he said.

Also with him were residents and representatives from the highway concessionaire Grand Saga and Public Works Department (PWD).

He added, “We need to take into consideration the construction of the MyRapid Transit (MRT) Sungai Buloh-Kajang line when planning the interchange.

“Some parts of the roads that are currently under the PWD have to be handed over to the council.”

The short-term remedy seemed to contradict what residents want when they attributed the congestion to the quick change of lights last year (“Quick change of lights causing jams in Bandar Mahkota Cheras”, Jan 5, 2012).

Bandar Mahkota Cheras Residents’ Association chairman, Bryan Tong, was quoted as saying that the traffic nightmare began in 2008 when the access road to the Cheras-Kajang Highway was re-opened.

“At the traffic lights installed at the entrance to Bandar Mahkota Cheras, the green signal only flashes for 20 seconds for traffic exiting our township to the highway and this creates congestion,” he said.

Bandar Mahkota Cheras resident S. Ravi, who has been living there for seven years, also agreed, “We would rather have a slower change of lights to allow more cars to pass.”

He urged the authorities to study the traffic light system as he noticed that traffic was smoother when the traffic light malfunctions.

“The roads are constantly congested and worsens during peak hours. It takes more than 30 minutes for me to get to the highway from my house, which is only a distance of 2km to 3km.

“I sometimes regret buying a house here,” the 50-year-old said.

As for residents’ and business owners’ request for a signboard to direct road users from the highway, Ismail said the concessionaire has agreed in principle for the sign to be installed and the cost will be borne by Bandar Mahkota Cheras’ developer.

Direct lines for public to alert MPKj of illegal activities

The Star, Saturday February 2, 2013

To be demolished: The council handed over its town hall, which is sited next to the Kajang Stadium, to the Mass Rapid Transit Corporation Sdn Bhd yesterday. The hall is slated to be demolished this year to make way for the My Rapid Transit (MRT) Sungai Buloh-Kajang line.

 

RESIDENTS can alert the Kajang Municipal Council (MPKj) enforcement department of illegal activities within the municipality through three direct lines.

Beginning today, members of the public can call 018-9129 476, 018-9129 066, 018-9129 756 between 8am and 10pm daily.

The three numbers are direct lines to the officers on duty.

According to MPKj president Datuk Hassan Nawawi Abdul Rahman, the hotline is meant for the public to alert the council after working hours.

He said the hotlines should be used to inform the council about unlicensed cybercafes and disruptive activities carried out past permitted hours.

He stressed that they should not be used to complain about family spats.

On another matter, councillor Lee Kee Hiong called for consistency in issuing summonses to unlicensed cybercafes.

She cited an example of a cybercafe that was slapped with a RM300 compound after the council confiscated more than 30 computers from its outlet while another outlet had to pay a higher amount despite having less computers seized.

An officer from the enforcement department explained that the outlet receiving the higher fine might have been a repeat offender.

Lee also pointed out that it was unfair for both unlicensed hawkers and cybercafes to be fined the same amount.

“Currently, those who rent premises to unlicensed cybercafe operators do not have to bear any responsibility.

“The state is looking into making the owner responsible so that they are more careful of who they rent their premises to,” she said.

Last year, the council carried out 48 raids on unlicensed cybercafes.

In an unrelated development, the council handed over its town hall, which is sited next to the Kajang Stadium, to the Mass Rapid Transit Corporation Sdn Bhd yesterday.

The hall is slated to be demolished this year to make way for the MyRapid Transit (MRT) Sungai Buloh-Kajang line.

A hearing is currently being held to determine the compensation that the council will receive for the demolition of the town hall.