Councillor questions missing temple plot

Councillor questions missing temple plot

MPSJ councillor Loka Ng Sai Kai has urged the council to defer a development endorsement for developer Maxisegar Sdn Bhd today, after a promised allocation for a Buddhist temple went missing in the developer’s plan.

A Subang Jaya Municipal Council (MPSJ) councillor Loka Ng Sai Kai has urged the council to defer a development endorsement for developer Maxisegar Sdn Bhd today, after a promised allocation for a Buddhist temple went missing in the developer’s plan.

The developer, who was tasked to build three places of worship in Tmn Puncak Jalil, has left out a Buddhist temple in their latest amendment plan, said Loka at the council’s monthly full board meeting today.

He said the amendment plan outlines that a Hindu temple, which is supposed to span through a 0.5 acres plot, has been reduced to 0.32 acres; while a church’s size has been increased from 0.5 acres to 1.0 acres.

“However, there is no mention about the Buddhist temple throughout the plan,” he said.

He also raised his doubts over the developer’s citing of the church as “private church” (gereja swasta).

Rajiv Rishyakaran, a fellow councillor, suggested that the term might hint to the church’s ownership after it is built, though the real definition remains unclear.

Acting council president Abdullah Marjunid then instructed the endorsement to be deferred and the amendment to be studied again via the one-stop centre (OSC) committee.

New guideline for shoplot dormitories

On the other hand, the council has approved a guideline for student dormitories to be built in shop houses and private residences.

The new guideline requires premise owners to submit structure plans before converting their premises besides having to comply with firefighting and phone company guidelines.

Each dormitory must be furnished with a living room and pantry, while the minimum size for a room is 6.55 square meters, said Abdullah.

“However, we are giving out two months of grace period so that existing dormitory owners can comply with the rule,” he added.

About 320 summonses were issued in 2010 to premise owners who illegally converted their buildings to dormitories, with many of them from the SS15 area where several private colleges are situated.