GEORGE TOWN, March 6 — A total of 15 non-governmental organisations (NGO) and six individuals today attended the public hearing on the draft Penang Structure Plan 2030 (PSP) to present their proposals, suggestions and objections.
Most of the NGOs, which consisted of professional bodies and civil society groups, claimed that they were not invited to any of the previous public hearings on the draft plan that took place in January and February.
Among the NGOs that turned up today were several residents’ associations, Penang Forum, Real Estate and Housing Developers Association (Rehda), Malaysian Institute of Architects (PAM), Penang Consumers Association (CAP), Sahabat Alam Malaysia (SAM) and also Parti Socialis Malaysia.
Each organisation was only allowed 10 minutes per session to present their objections or proposals during the two-hour hearing at the town and country planning department’s (PLANMalaysia) office in Komtar.
Rehda Penang branch chairman Datuk Toh Chin Leong said the organisation had submitted its proposals on the draft PSP2030 to the state administration in October 2018 but it was not sure if its proposals were taken into account.
“We were not invited to the previous hearings and today is the first time they invited us so we will present our proposals on the PSP2030 today,” he said.
Among the items that Rehda is proposing is that the state establish a housing board.
“The state government should establish a board to monitor, implement, distribute and take charge of the maintenance and enforcement of social housing projects including affordable housing,” Toh said.
He said the board can create a comprehensive database on how many housing units are available in the state, including affordable housing, and how many the state would need to build to meet the demand.
“With this database, the state will be able to determine the demand and supply and prevent oversupply of housing units across all price ranges,” he said.
Tanjung Bungah Residents Association chairman Meenakshi Raman said she presented 10 important points on changes in the PSP2030 that could adversely affect Tanjung Bungah, Batu Ferringhi and the state as a whole.
The main point she stressed was the classification of Tanjung Bungah as a main development area.
“We are firmly opposed to high-density developments in the Tanjung Bungah-Teluk Bahang area and stress that there is a need in the PSP2030 to place restrictions on developments in this area,” she said.
Meenakshi said the Tanjung Bungah-Teluk Bahang corridor should remain in its original classification as a secondary corridor with limits to density when it comes to development.
She also pointed out that the PSP2030’s projection of population in Penang was wrong.
“The growth rate figure of 2.25 per cent for Penang in the draft PSP2030 is seriously questionable and unacceptable and it has to be justified,” she said.
She also said the proposed Penang Transport Master Plan (PTMP) had yet to be approved but was already included as part of the PSP2030.
Meenakshi said it should not be gazetted as the main guideline for transportation in the structure plan.
Penang Forum’s Lim Mah Hui also said the PTMP does not fit with the state’s sustainable and green economy goals.
“It does not solve traffic problems in the state and despite no approvals for the proposed LRT and monorail, these were already included in the PSP2030,” he said.
He said the draft PSP2030 must be based on scientific data instead of it being based on “interest-driven” reasons.
“While we support public transport, the proposal should include cost effective and efficient systems instead of the expensive LRT,” he said.
Lim said the state did not conduct prudent financial comparisons to ensure that the public transport system they proposed are low cost, effective and efficient.
“The state is financially irresponsible to want to spend so much on projects that will put the state in financial distress,” he said.
Lim hoped that the hearing today was not only for show but an actual exercise to seriously take their proposals and objections into considerations in finalising the draft PSP2030.
“If this is simply to give us a hearing but they won’t even consider our proposals, it will just be a waste of time,” he said.
The PSP2030 is a review of the PSP2020 that was gazetted in 2007.
The structure plan governs the types of development projects allowed in the state while outlining development plans for the state until 2030.
The PSP2030 review started in November 2011 and is in its final stages of completion before it is gazetted.
