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Saturday, November 22, 2008, 05.07 PM

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Damansara Heights landslide: Developer blamed for 'not giving complete report'

Shuhada Elis
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"They gave us reports from experts that it was safe for them to conduct work but I believe they didn't give us a complete report. So this is their fault."

Saravanan was commenting on a landslip near the Damansara 21 development site, which forced two families to flee their homes.

He said City Hall initially approved the developer's development request as it was on privately-owned land and it had met all conditions and guidelines.

"We didn't approve it for development.

"It is a stage-by-stage procedure and we stopped the work after receiving reports from the Department of Irrigation and Drainage and the Minerals and Geoscience Department that the site was not suitable for development."

Saravanan, who visited the landslip site, said, as the developer, Selangor Dredging should also consider the interest of residents.

Segambut member of parliament Lim Lip Eng, who visited the site yesterday, said he received an anonymous call saying the landslip would not have happened if residents had not intervened in the project.

"Now someone is blaming the residents," Lim said, adding that he would raise the matter with Federal Territories Minister Datuk Seri Zulhasnan Rafique in Parliament.

A spokesman for Selangor Dredging, in an email sent to the New Straits Times a few days ago, said claims of impropriety made by residents were unfair.

She said the residents seemed to suggest that the company used bribery to get the project approved, although it had obtained approvals from the authorities.

She said the residents did not accept its invitation to view the plans and to seek clarification but, instead, accused it of abusing the law. The email came about after a report in the NST that the residents' association would bring the matter to the Anti-Corruption Agency.