GE15: except for BN, all Setiawangsa candidates sign pledge to save Bukit Dinding

KUALA LUMPUR – The quest by Wangsa Maju and Setiawangsa residents to save Bukit Dinding has received a boost with pledges of support to preserve the green lung from five out of six candidates for the  Setiawangsa parliamentary seat in the 15th general election.

Pakatan Harapan’s Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad, Perikatan Nasional’s Nurul Fadzilah Kamaluddin, Pejuang’s Bibi Sunita Sakandar Khan, and independent candidates Stanley Lim Yen Tiong and Mior Rosli Mior Mohd Jaafar each signed a declaration of commitment against any future development of Bukit Dinding at a town hall meeting last night.

The candidates also took questions from the audience and shared their views on environmental and safety issues as well as efforts by civil society groups to protect the surrounding hills.

However, Barisan Nasional (BN) candidate Datuk Seri Izudin Ishak did not attend the town hall event last night organised by Friends of Bukit Dinding.

The Vibes has attempted to reach Izudin and his camp at press time about his stand on the proposed building of condominiums and other residential properties on Bukit Dinding.

When asked if Izudin had been invited, a spokesman with Friends of Bukit Dinding said: “We have invited him and also informed his assistant about the pledge and we didn’t get any response.”

As yet, it is unknown whether the BN candidate will put his signature on the pledge of support before polling day this Saturday.

The details of the pledge, signed by the five candidates at the town hall meeting last night, state that he or she will commit to fight and support all efforts to save and preserve the green lungs of Bukit Dinding from any attempts to conduct deforestation and development.

This would include the construction of “any building or structure whether residential or otherwise by any developer or contractor or party”, the pledge states.

Residents in the area will also seek a judicial review from the court to halt the purported development.

Four residents’ associations (RA) namely Section 5 Muafakat, Coalition of Lojing Heights Residents, Waizuri 1 and Waizuri 2 RAs are initiating the legal action, and have hired prominent lawyer Datuk Gurdial Singh Nijar to file a judicial review in the high court.

Gurdial is also legal counsel to the Taman Tun Dr Ismail residents who are protesting the development of Taman Rimba Kiara by Yayasan Wilayah Persekutuan and Memang Perkasa Sdn Bhd, which was given a development order (DO) by Kuala Lumpur City Hall in July 2017.

Bukit Dinding, a privately owned site, is a popular hiking site for local residents and Klang Valley runners.

It was reported that development plans for the hill include two 26-storey apartment blocks, bungalows, as well as villas at its foothill.

The plan only came to light after Wangsa Maju Section 5 and 6, and Taman Setiawangsa residents discovered the DO for the proposed construction three months ago. The DO was in fact dated March 28 this year and was issued by the city hall to Nova Pesona Sdn Bhd.

Already prone to landslides, residents fear the project will worsen existing problems. They also claim that the environmental impact assessment (EIA) report for the project is invalid.

“The survey was done in 2014, (but) the (EIA) report was dated in 2017. 

“How is it possible for that report to be used to support the development now?” said secretary of Muafakat Section 5 Wangsa Maju RA Sri Utami Dewi Kasman.

Residents also fear that the proposed apartment blocks would invite tragedy, similar to the two locations not far from Bukit Dinding – Highland Towers and Bukit Antarabangsa.

“I understand that the developers will divert the small river stream to build the tower blocks. This measure was similar when building Highland Towers many years ago where it ended with a tragedy after many years of occupancy,” Sri Dewi added, referring to the incident in December 1993 which killed 48 people. 

A statement by the Kuala Lumpur City Hall in September said Bukit Dinding’s developer should not proceed with any work until discussions are held with residents in the area. The city hall also said the site was first approved for development in 2004, and a revised plan for residential development was approved in 2018. – The Vibes, November 17, 2022