While a landslide was taking place at the end of last year in Cameron Highlands, another development zoned for infrastructure across the mountain range was being cleared for high-rise buildings in Ipoh.

About 10km from Cameron Highlands, in Ipoh, at the foothills of the waterlogged Tambun area, a Perak MB Inc-alienated land was cleared for a high-density development called the Qube.

The two blocks of 15-storey residential units to be constructed adjacent to a retention pond have all the makings of a huge potential disaster similar to a Highland Towers collapse, say residents.

The construction site is only 80 metres away from the retention pond.

Afraid of further floodings and soil disturbance and erosion, about 600 residents and owners living in the area held a protest and are sending a petition urging that the project be stopped.

The project is undertaken by MH Amanjaya Properties Sdn Bhd, a joint-venture between Amanjaya Properties Ventures Sdn Bhd and Man Hoe Properties Sdn Bhd.

Amanjaya Properties Ventures Sdn Bhd’s ultimate shareholder is Perak MB Inc, while Man Hoe Properties is controlled by Kinta Saujana, which is in turn controlled by Man Hoe Holdings Sdn Bhd.

The joint management committees of both the Permai Lake View Apartments and The Haven Lakeside Residences have repeatedly appealed and petitioned to the authorities that the waterlogged land of about two acres is not suitable for high-rise buildings.

They are living in worry that they may have to face the wrath of floods, erosion and soil disturbance and erosion, and they fear that it may ultimately affect their buildings as well.

Permai Lake View chairperson Said Ahmad said according the Ipoh Masterplan, the site zoned for infrastructure and utilities was not gazetted for the construction of high-rise buildings.

“I cannot understand how drainage works had started in the waterlogged area without any approval from Ipoh’s One Stop Centre.”

Meanwhile, Qube Amanjaya director Adnan Shahuddin said that the project would be constructed on the said land (500 metres) away from the previous retention pond, although a quick check revealed that it is only 80 metres away.

Meanwhile, a geophysical subsurface report by two geophysicists stressed that the development in the waterlogged area is “highly dangerous for further construction of high-rise buildings on the site.

“There is a risk on rising ground water levels resulting from heavier rainfall and can present flooding problems if these areas are subjected to inappropriate land modifications,” another geophysical expert report stated.