PETALING JAYA, Dec 14 — One City Development Sdn Bhd today lauded Attorney General (AG) Tommy Thomas for the comprehensive settlement to the dispute over the Seafield temple land, which led to a violent fracas last month.
The developer expressed confidence that the settlement put forth by Thomas today will bring about a peaceful and lasting resolution to the issue surrounding the Sri Maha Mariamman Devasthanam temple.
Following the riot on November 26, it said it had reached out to the government, both at the federal and Selangor state levels, to propose and discuss possible solutions to the matter, adding that it expressed its commitment in providing necessary resources to reach a resolution.
“We are grateful for the government’s stewardship in bringing relevant parties together to resolve the land issue as quickly and amicably as possible,” One City said in a statement.
“We understand that there are various steps to the resolution proposed by the attorney general and we are committed to working closely with the AG’s Chambers. We are appreciative of the attorney general’s leadership and the give and take approach exercised in achieving a resolution to this matter,” it added.
Earlier today, Thomas said in a statement that lawyers of the parties involved had met at his office earlier this week and in the spirit of consensus, had reached a settlement that is expected to lead to an amicable end to the dispute in the coming months.
They had agreed that — subject to terms to be agreed upon — One City will transfer one acre of land on which the temple is located to a trust to be administered by the High Court.
The AG, in the exercise of his powers as guardian of the public interest with regard to charitable trusts, will apply to the High Court, pursuant to Section 9 of the Government Proceedings Act 1956, for orders to constitute the trust and the appointment of trustees to manage the trust and the temple, Thomas said.
He added the High Court will be invited to appoint a Receiver, who will be a person of repute, standing and integrity acceptable to all the disputants, who as an officer of the Court will have control and direction over the trustees of the temple, and subject to Court supervision.
“At the appropriate time, the High Court will be invited to transfer the ownership of the land on which the temple is situated to the trustees. And in order to ensure impartiality and neutrality amongst the various groups in the temple, the attorney general hopes to be represented in all the applications before the High Court,” said Thomas.
The dispute over the temple begin after One City bought the land where it is located in the early 1990s. It led to the temple’s devotees being split into two factions — one for the relocation and the other insisting on staying put.
After several court cases and in spite of payments being made, the parties involved still could not reach an agreement and it, ultimately, resulted in the fracas on November 26, which left a fireman in critical condition after he was allegedly assaulted.
