Get developers to pay more, says Penang opposition leader

GEORGE TOWN: The Penang government should collect more funds from developers for use in flood mitigation projects and to build more drains, state opposition leader Jahara Hamid (BN-Telok Ayer Tawar) told the state assembly today.

She said the collection of funds from developers into the state Drainage Contribution Fund was putting the state at a loss.

Jahara said developers are only paying RM50,000 per acre for development, but are then building massive projects, such as high-rise apartments, on the site.

“We should start collecting funds based on density, not acreage of the project. That way, we can increase our drainage contribution.

“What is the use of charging per acre when these developers then built towering blocks with hundreds of units? We should charge them more.

“Especially on Penang island, where land is scarce, it would not make sense to charge so little. So the density way is the best option,” Jahara said.

Howwever, she did not propose a higher fee for the density-based fund’s collection proposal.

Jahara was responding to Chow Kon Yeow’s (DAP-Padang Kota) explanation on how the state Drainage Contribution Fund was spent to alleviate flash floods during a Question and Answer session in the assembly this morning.

The state exco in charge of local government and flood mitigation said Jahara’s suggestion would be taken into consideration, adding her idea was “concise” and to the point.

“Finally, the opposition leader has come up with a good idea after nine years in the state assembly, what a ‘bernas’ (smart) idea,” Chow said, which elicited laughter from the backbenchers.

Earlier, Chow said from 2013 to 2017, RM90.7 million was collected from developers under the Drainage Contribution Fund.

The funds are collected by the respective city and municipal councils in the state.

He said there was approximately RM20 million left in the fund, but RM135 million was spent on drainage and flood mitigation works, with funds sourced from the state’s coffers.

Federal government’s expenditure

Chow also revealed that since 2008 to September this year, 2,207 flood mitigation projects were implemented at a cost of RM300 million from the state’s coffers.

He said the federal government spent RM1.074 billion on 32 flood mitigation projects from the Ninth Malaysia Plan to Eleventh Malaysia Plan spanning form 2006 to Sept 2017.

Chow was responding to Soon Lip Chee’s (DAP-Jawi) written question on how many state and federal flood mitigation projects were implemented in the state.

The flood issue has been a hotly-debated topic at the state assembly since last week, following the worst flash floods in the state on Nov 4 and 5.

Over half of Penang was submerged in flood waters following hours of torrential rain. The floods also resulted in the death of seven people, most of whom were senior citizens. More than 6,000 people were evacuated from their homes.

Official statistics show that about one and half month’s worth of rain had showered on the state in a continuous spell lasting 15 hours. -FMT