Foul smell, fuming residents

Some 5,000 residents living in Bandar Baru Permas Jaya housing estate here, in Johor Bahru, are not amused at having to put up with a nauseating foul smell for almost two months.

The smell is said to be caused by a malfunctioning sewage treatment system in the area.

The residents are asking the city council to resolve the problem immediately.

Low Yock Mooi, 40, a resident in the area, said that they have repeatedly contacted the city council and also the city councillor of Permas Jaya Zone about the matter, only yo be told that the person-in-charge is not in the office or is on leave.

She said, after numerous failed attempts to get the city council to act, she decided to lodge a complaint with the Permas Jaya public complaints centre last week to seek its assistance in bringing up the problem to the relevant parties for immediate action.

Low admitted that the city council did inform her that there will be a contractor who will be attending the problem.

In explaining the situation she said, prior to this, the city council’s appointed contractor cleaned up the oxidation pond and checked the sewage treatment system either two or three times a week. Since last month however, no one has been carrying out the routine.

Permas Jaya public complaint centre supervisor, Syed Othman Syed Abdullah, confirmed receiving the complaint from the residents last week and he said that the complaint has been forwarded to the city council.

The city council then informed him that there is no fund allocation to repair the sewage treatment system and this has also been conveyed to the residents, added Syed Othman.

Low said she has been informed earlier by the city council that a contractor will be sent to rectify the problem and now the city council says that they do not have the funds to repair the malfunctioned sewage treatment system.

“I will now lodge another complaint to the city council and one to the state public compliant bureau”, she told reporters when asked what she plans to do next.

Meanwhile, the Johor Bahru city mayor, Mohd Jaafar Awang, commented that the city council has received multiple complaints on the same issue and needs to consider all of them.