Ministry had intended to declassify landslide report
Rahmah GhazaliPublished: Nov 26, 2009 6:11 AM | Updated: Nov 26, 2009 7:01 AM
According to the Parliament Hansard dated Nov 9, Works Minister Shaziman Abu Mansor had declared the report would be made public.
The controversial declassification of the Bukit Antarabangsa landslide report would not be an issue if the Works Ministry had carried out its earlier plans.
According to the Parliament Hansard dated Nov 9, Works Minister Shaziman Abu Mansor had declared the report would be made public.
"The report is in the final printing process and will be put up on the Works Ministry and the Public Works Department (PWD) website.
"The bi-lingual report can also be downloaded by the public and the process is expected to be completed at the end of this year," said Shaziman during his Budget 2010 policy speech debate in Parliament.
The minister also said that the hazardous map report on the landslide was ready and officially submitted to Ampang Jaya Municipal Council (MPAJ) on Sept 11, 2009.
Despite all this, Shaziman was quoted in the English daily New Straits Times yesterday as saying that there was no need for the federal government to declassify it, as Menteri Besar Abdul Khalid Ibrahim "was already making various statements" on the causes of landslides.
Commenting on this, Klang MP Charles Santiago said that the ‘sudden reverse' by the federal government indicated "it is protecting certain quarters".
In the four-page summary report released by the state government earlier, one of the main causes stated was active water pipe leaks.
According to the report, Santiago said the pipes were not attended to or repaired.
"Maybe they are simply trying to protect business and contractors involved in the distribution and management of water in the state."
Santiago added that if indeed the cause of the landslide was a result of negligence and poor maintenance by the water company, immediate action should be taken against the parties responsible.
Reports put on hold
The Selangor government was applauded for announcing it was declassifying the landslide report last week.
However, the federal government decided to block the move, arguing that the reports were released through the PWD and not the state government.
This has landed the Selangor menteri besar in hot water, with many federal government leaders claiming his possible breach of the Official Secrets Act. Such an offence carries a mandatory jail sentence upon conviction.
But Abdul Khalid denied that he had committed any offense, saying that the state government merely released a ‘general statement' of the report, rather than the full details of it.
Due to the circumstances, the planned declassification of the reports on Monday was instead put on hold pending federal government approval.
Meanwhile, attempts to contact PWD officials to comment on the reports have been futile, as they are already on leave for the long weekend.
According to the Parliament Hansard dated Nov 9, Works Minister Shaziman Abu Mansor had declared the report would be made public."The report is in the final printing process and will be put up on the Works Ministry and the Public Works Department (PWD) website.
"The bi-lingual report can also be downloaded by the public and the process is expected to be completed at the end of this year," said Shaziman during his Budget 2010 policy speech debate in Parliament.
The minister also said that the hazardous map report on the landslide was ready and officially submitted to Ampang Jaya Municipal Council (MPAJ) on Sept 11, 2009.
Despite all this, Shaziman was quoted in the English daily New Straits Times yesterday as saying that there was no need for the federal government to declassify it, as Menteri Besar Abdul Khalid Ibrahim "was already making various statements" on the causes of landslides.
Commenting on this, Klang MP Charles Santiago said that the ‘sudden reverse' by the federal government indicated "it is protecting certain quarters".
In the four-page summary report released by the state government earlier, one of the main causes stated was active water pipe leaks.
According to the report, Santiago said the pipes were not attended to or repaired.
"Maybe they are simply trying to protect business and contractors involved in the distribution and management of water in the state."
Santiago added that if indeed the cause of the landslide was a result of negligence and poor maintenance by the water company, immediate action should be taken against the parties responsible.
Reports put on hold
The Selangor government was applauded for announcing it was declassifying the landslide report last week.
However, the federal government decided to block the move, arguing that the reports were released through the PWD and not the state government.
This has landed the Selangor menteri besar in hot water, with many federal government leaders claiming his possible breach of the Official Secrets Act. Such an offence carries a mandatory jail sentence upon conviction.But Abdul Khalid denied that he had committed any offense, saying that the state government merely released a ‘general statement' of the report, rather than the full details of it.
Due to the circumstances, the planned declassification of the reports on Monday was instead put on hold pending federal government approval.
Meanwhile, attempts to contact PWD officials to comment on the reports have been futile, as they are already on leave for the long weekend.
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