Tenaga National Berhad (TNB) can be sued for trespass by the villagers of Kampung Sungai Terentang, on whose land the national power company intends to hoist high tension cables, says a technical committee representing them.

“The villagers can sue TNB for trespass, as it does not have their permission to enter (their land), as required by law,” committee secretary James Ooi said in statement.

NONE This was because, Ooi said, TNB needed to apply to the local district office - in this case, Gombak - for permission to enter into any land to put up new electricity lines or upgrade existing ones.

                   

The district office, in turn, must get the express consent of individual landowners before TNB can be granted permission.

This, Ooi said, was in accordance with the requirements under section 11 of the Electricity Supply Act 1990.

He maintained that TNB did not make any such application to the Gombak district office, and neither was the consent of the villagers sought nor granted, despite new construction and upgrading works already underway.

Under the law, the land office must endorse each individual land title after the owner has granted permission before TNB can commence  construction or upgrading works, Ooi added.

'TNB no right to be there'

Ooi submitted that none of the land titles of the Kampung Sungai Terentang residents had any endorsement to indicate that the national electricity provider was given leave of access, which means TNB has no right to be there.

NONE While TNB had argued, after protests from the villagers, that it did apply to upgrade the existing power cables, Ooi maintained that the company does not have the permission of the villagers to enter the area.

The villagers of Kampung Sungai Terentang have been engaged in a long-drawn battle with TNB over the power company’s plans to run high tension electricity cables over their land near they live.

TNB claims that the proposed route for the cables was of optimal importance to backstop the national power grid, while the villagers have raised health and quality of life concerns over such an installation.

TNB is still trying to proceed with its plan despite the villagers seeking legal means to prevent it as well as getting the support of the Selangor government, which has issued a stop work order to the utility company.

Donald Lim to meet MB next week

Meanwhile, according to Bernama , Selangor MCA chairman Donald Lim Siang Chai urged the state government to resolve the deadlock between the residents and TNB.

The deputy finance minister said he had received a directive from Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak to deal with the stalemate and would meet with Selangor Menteri Besar Abdul Khalid Ibrahim next week to obtain an explanation.

"I urge the menteri besar to settle the issue as the area is under the jurisdiction of the state government.

NONE "I am surprised that the state government is silent about it," he told media at Parliament's lobby yesterday.

According to the news agency, Lim said the prime minister during his visit to Rawang recently received a memorandum from the Rawang Residents' Association requesting his (Najib's) intervention.

Lim said the problem arose when residents objected to the Central Area Reinforcement (CAR) project costing RM400 million.

"The state government had promised to resolve their dilemma but had not done so. I want to find a fair solution for both the residents and TNB," he was quoted as saying.

Lim said the CAR project was started in 2005 and when completed would increase electricity output from 33 kilovolts (kV) to 275kV and help overcome power shortage in Klang Valley.

"But because the residents opposed it, the proposed works have since remained suspended without the state government acting on it," he said.