Disgruntled residents from Section 1 today submitted a preliminary objection to the Petaling Jaya Municipal Council (MPPJ) president Emran Kadir, claiming that the entire exercise of the PJ1 local plan draft is illegal and is in fact a back-door land acquisition.

Their contention is that the Petaling and part of Klang District Structure Plan gazetted in 1996 is still the legitimate and effective master plan for any development or redevelopment in PJ.

It is clear that the 1996 structure plan is still in force and cannot be altered, as a result of which a new local plan cannot exist, said the residents.

The residents have given the MPPJ seven days to hold a public forum and give an undertaking that it will withdraw all actions related to the draft plan such as the briefing sessions with residents of different sections which have been going on the past two weeks.

Failing to respond accordingly will result in the matter being taken to court without notice to the MPPJ for a declaration that the draft plan is null and void by way of being an illegality.

The three-page notice was hand-delivered by the lawyer acting on behalf of resident MJ Palan and 60 others, mainly from Section 1 which is situated between Old Town and Old Klang Road.

Copies of the objection will be given to various parties including the MPPJ and Selangor legal advisors, Selangor Menteri Besar Dr Mohd Khir Toyo and Attorney-General Abdul Gani Patail.

When contacted, MPPJ public relations officer Haniza Abdul Hamid said the council will take note of objections within the public objection period ending May 18.

Let them object. [I have] no comment, she said when asked about the seven-day notice.

The draft plan has earmarked sections 1, 2, 3 and 4 for massive redevelopment, including increasing the population density and several major infrastructure projects.

(Part two of a series of articles published by malaysiakini this week focused on the possible illegality of the draft plan based on its inconsistency with the Town and Country Planning Act 1976, the National Land Code and the Federal Constitution.)

Residents upset, confused

Several residents met at the MPPJ office in PJ today said apart from being upset and worried over the whole thing, they were very confused because they can neither understand the draft plan nor the explanations given by the MPPJ and the state assemblypersons thus far.

Raymond Kwong, a resident of Section 2, said he was not against development but was distrustful of the MPPJ because there is no assurance that their land will remain safe.

Kwong, whose family moved to PJ in the early 1950s, received a letter from the Land Office in February this year requesting him to pay about RM110,000 to redeem his 99-year lease.

Where do we go for this kind of money? We are not rich people and first of all, why should we pay for renewal as if we are buying a new piece of land? What is the calculation based on?

Furthermore, I dont see why the MPPJ wants to increase the population in our area when it cannot even provide simple services properly like clearing clogged drains, preventing flashfloods and cutting the grass.

Elected representatives rapped

A resident from Section 1, R Muthu, was perturbed as to why certain elected representatives are silent over the problems faced by their constituents instead of attempting to explain the possible repercussions.

For example, why is Donald Lim not talking to us about the draft plan? We elected him as Petaling Jaya Selatan MP but when the public is facing a complicated problem like this, he goes missing, he said.

Resident Chow Sung Joo from Jalan Railway in Section 1 which is also earmarked for road construction, accused Bukit Gasing assemblyperson Dr Lim Thuang Seng of trying to cheat his constituents.

He does not know what he is doing. He is telling us that our land is 200 percent safe, but the draft plan says otherwise, and the MPPJ confirmed that compulsory land acquisition will take place later.

Chow, in his late 50s, said he totally objects to any construction of three- or five-storey apartments in his area because it will not only increase the density but will also inconvenience occupants.

He said the MPPJ was planning to tear down the whole of Section 1 and build walk-up apartments instead.

I have been living here since 1969 and I like it this way. I just rebuilt my house a few years ago for about RM145,000 using my Employees Provident Fund money. At my age now, I have no more funds.

If at all the MPPJ wants to enhance the quality of life in PJ, they should start with providing proper services and not some grandiose plans to landscape some area or the other.

Rumours in 1995

In 1995, said Chow, there were very strong rumours that the area will be redeveloped but when it died down, he decided that it was safe to proceed with the house renovation plans.

Another Section 1 resident, R Mylvaganam, said he was among those who had received a letter from the land office asking him to surrender his lease.

The pensioner said his family has been living there for the past 40 years and the house they live in is a gift from his late mother-in-law.

When they redevelop this place, where are we to go?

Section 5 Residents Association vice-president Jeya Mahesan, who is working together with the residents lawyer, claimed that the MPPJ and the Petaling Land Office are working hand-in-glove to effect the reverse acquisition.

He claimed that the residents are encouraged by the Land Office to negotiate the hefty premium for renewal of the land lease downward when there is no reason to demand the surrender of the leases which have another 20-30 years to go.

I am told by a reliable source, and here I invoke Section 126 of the Evidence Act, that there are boxes of letters for each and every house, street and area of PJ ready and on standby in the Land Office.

He also claimed that no matter what the residents object to, the MPPJ will request the state to gazette the draft plan which will pave the way for compulsory acquisition under the law.

But in this instance, there will be no compensation as the leases would have already been surrendered to the state.

More pollution and problems

DAP national publicity chief Ronnie Liu said the draft plan goes against the Local Agenda 21, a national commitment with the United Nations to improve local governance by public participation.

He said the draft plan does nothing much to improve the quality of life for PJ residents because it talks about increasing the density and road construction which contribute to more pollution, social problems and stress.

The MPPJ has no good reason to develop or redevelop PJ. If it is really serious, why not release all four local plans under the structure plan instead of just PJ1? At least, then we can compare and comment on them with facts.

But I think the whole plan here is to divide and rule so that everyone is confused and no one can get together to be a formidable force to voice the objections and halt the plan.

Liu also asked assemblyperson Lim to do his homework first before trying to explain the draft plan because it only serves to confuse people further, unless that is the intended result.