The building contractor undertaking the construction works at the landslide site in Tanjung Bungah will be blacklisted by the Penang Island City Council (MBPP), Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said.
The site for the construction of 980 affordable housing units is being developed by Taman Sri Bunga Sdn Bhd, while the main contractor is BSG Global Builders Sdn Bhd, and the building contractor is Choongcons (Penang) Sdn Bhd.
Lim said the contractor, together with any consultant experts directly involved, would be blacklisted after the outcome of investigations by the State Commission of Inquiry.
"Until the Commission of Inquiry completes its work and issues its findings, the developer will not be allowed to start work on the affordable housing project," Lim said during his visit to the site in Lembah Permai today.
He said the MBPP has also been directed to conduct immediate checks and take action on construction building sites, especially slope-related ones, to ensure that the guidelines are complied with to ensure not only building safety but also structural stability.
"Something must be very wrong during the construction work because there was no rain for the past several days that could cause the slope to collapse," said Lim (photo), who is also DAP secretary-general.
"While we do not wish to speculate, strong suspicions remain of professional negligence, defects in monitoring and non-compliance with work safety procedures," he added.
The State Commission of Inquiry will be formed by the Penang government under Section 2(3)(d) and 3(1) of the Commissions of Enquiry Act 1950.
Terms of reference to be issued
Next week, the Penang executive council will work out and approve the establishment of the commission and its terms of reference, the third of its kind since Lim took over the state in 2008.
The commission will be set up according to the same lines as a previous one set up in 2013 into the collapse of a section of the Second Penang Bridge that killed a motorist passing through, and the collapse of the tower at Menara Umno along Macalister Road that killed two members of the public.
Yesterday, 11 lives were lost, among them, 10 construction workers and one site supervisor, after the land collapsed and trapped 14 people.
Lim and his administration have been strongly criticised for turning a "deaf ear" to pleas from civil societies and residents who called for a halt to hillside development.
Describing the incident as a tragedy, Lim expressed deepest condolences to the Malaysian family from Penang, as well as to the governments of Bangladesh, Indonesia, Pakistan and Myanmar.
"The Penang State Commission of Inquiry will conduct a full and independent investigation to determine the cause of this worksite accident and take action against those responsible," Lim said
"I would also be recommending that the Commission of Inquiry be empowered to investigate all ancillary matters related to the project," he added.
Lim also thanked the Fire and Rescue Services Department, Civil Defence Department, the police, local government agencies and Buddhist NGO Tzu Chi for their assistance in conducting the rescue and relief work.
"While we thank members of the public for their concern, we hope they can give space to the affected families to grieve and allow rescue or relief work to continue unhampered," Lim added.
The developer has described the incident as a worksite accident and has launched its own investigation into the disaster.
- Mkini
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