GEORGE TOWN, March 10 — There have been no incidents where temples or shrines had to be forcibly demolished in Penang over the past decades, said Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow.

He said the state government has always sought peaceful solutions that involved relocating non-Islamic places of worship (RIBI) to make way for infrastructure projects or that were built on private lands.

“We have solutions that involved looking for suitable alternative sites and relocating RIBIs so the situation in Penang is under control,” he said in a press conference after launching an AI for Manufacturing Programme and AI Sandbox at PSDC here today.

He said if RIBIs are located on lands to be developed, the state imposed conditions that the developers must look for alternative sites for the RIBI to be relocated or at the very least provide compensation for the RIBI to relocate.

Chow admitted that there are still RIBI that were without permits in the state that have been around for many years.

“We tolerate existing structures but we are strict to ensure no new structures are illegally built,” he said.

He said enforcement will ensure that no new RIBI structures crop up anywhere to prevent this issue from growing.

“Those that are still occupying premises that are unlicensed, it will take a period of time for us to complete our whitelisting and relocation process,” he said.

He said some RIBI may not need to relocated if the land they are on is not required for development or infrastructure but in other cases, lands are provided for relocation when the need arises.

“It is a long process, but I think we have started this for more than 10 years, it is under control, but undeniably, there are still some cases that require attention, including relocation and so on,” he said.

For example, he said the state had converted unused Indah Water Konsortium (IWK) treatment plant lands in Seberang Perai that are no longer in use into RIBI plots so that nearby RIBIs can be relocated.

“We have a project in Ampang Jajar where we prepared more than 30 plots for RIBI in Bagan to relocate,” he said.

He said more that 20 organisations have been offered plots and some have started construction.

“This is how we are handling the RIBI issue that were built before this without permits, this is our philosophy, we want to relocate these places peacefully,” he said.

When asked about the recent issue raised by a non-governmental organisation (NGO) about a Hindu temple in front of Bukit Mertajam Hospital, he said the temple is allowed to remain on site for now.

“It will take time for us to find an alternative site before any final decision is made, but how fast or how slow we resolve this depends on the merits of the case,” he said.

He said if the state can provide plots for 30 RIBI in Ampang Jajar for those places in Butterworth area, the state will find solutions for RIBIs in other districts but the state will also ensure that no new RIBIs are built without permits.