PUTATAN HOTEL BUILT ON ROAD WITHOUT APPROVAL?

DEPUTY Chief Minister-cum-Petagas Assemblyman, Datuk Seri Yahya Hussin was shocked to discover that a hotel under construction near the Putatan Platinum Plaza had taken over even the five-foot way without attracting the attention of the authorities.

Yahya who was on a walkabout inspection of the shophouses found that the developer had also closed off part of the road for the construction of the hotel.

Accompanying Yahya, who is also State Minister of Agriculture and Food Industry, was Putatan District Officer Ag Abd Ghani Pg Yusoff and District Council Deputy Chairman Arsit Sedi as well as officers from the Department of Drainage and Irrigation and the Public Works Department.

Yahya said it was wrong for the developer to errect a buiding without the knowledge of the District Council. "Of course we are pro-business but we have to consider the interests of the people living in the area as well and not only that of business.

"Each development plan must follow the rules and buidings must follow the plans submitted by the developer and only after receiving the council's approval can the developer commence building works," he said.

"Although the hotel seems to have a development plan, it has not been forwarded to the Putatan District Council for our approval," said Abd Ghani.

He said the hotel's action is posing an obstruction to road traffic as well as against the Council's building by-laws.

"As the administration body for this district, we regret the actions of the contractor which have disregarded the District Council building by-laws and regulations," he said.

Abd Ghani said since the Putatan District Council has now taken over from the Penampang District Council, the developers should have approached and presented their buiding plans to the Putatan District Council to endorse and streamline with the situation of the area.

"With the area nearby to be occupied soon by tenants of the 1,120 unit Putatan Platinum Apartment project nearby, the hotel's actions will create a lot of congestion and other problems," he said.

Abd Ghani said the District Council has instructed the contractor to stop work and take down the buiding as it is sitting on the road. (DE) - Sabahkini