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Wait for audit report
on building collapse
I REFER to “Consultant solely responsi-
ble” (June 2).
First, let me, on behalf of Pertubuhan
Akitek Malaysia (PAM), convey our
heartfelt condolences to the loved ones of
the seven victims of the construction site
accident at the former Jaya Supermarket.
We concur with MTUC that the families
should be compensated.
PAM believes it is important that the
government, professional bodies, Con-
struction Industry Development Board
(CIDB), contractors, local authorities
and developers work closely together
to regain the public’s confidence in the
building industry instead of making con-
fusing statements and creating further
fears. Under the 1Malaysia policy, public
safety is paramount. Full investigations
and audit of the incident must be made in
a transparent manner, the lessons learnt
must be made public, and our priorities
must be to ensure such incidents will
never recur.
PAM strongly believes that it is inappro-
priate and confusing to relate the tragedy
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tion)
to the Certification of Completion neer. And that was before CCC
and Compliance (CCC) because as
in more developed countries, demo-
lition works, especially for highrises,
is a specialist site preparation trade
that precedes the CCC process.
The CCC was introduced by
was introduced. Before CCC,
it was always the submitting
person who was responsible for
the building from start to finish.
After CCC was introduced, the
responsibility of the submitting
the Housing and Local Govern- person remains unchanged.
ment Ministry in 2007 to expedite Unlike Australia or the UK, by
the delivery system so as to make law, our local authorities were
Malaysia more competitive. CCC never made responsible for the
was formulated taking into consid- buildings.
eration the many parties involved in The fact is, even if we were
the delivery system. to revert to the old ways of hav-
One of the biggest improvements ing the local council issuing
under CCC was to allow contractors certificates of fitness (CF), the
(including trade contractors) to be local council would still not be
held accountable, over 21 stages, responsible for the buildings,
instead of solely by the submitting because that’s the law, nor could
person. As seen in the Highland that prevent buildings from col-
Towers incident, the court had lapsing before, during, or after
absolved the local authority of any construction.
responsibility over the collapse, and The implementation of CCC
had apportioned the responsibilities does not take away the rights of
to a number of parties, including the the local authority to inspect the
submitting person, ie the registered site during construction. In fact,
draftsperson, and structural engi- the intention of the CCC is also
to allow the local authority more
time to carry out enforcement.
However, local councils are
never involved in monitoring
the structural soundness of the
demolition of existing works, nor
the construction of new build-
ings, post or pre-CCC.
Site safety during erection is
already covered by other laws.
So, the old CF system will not
prevent an unfortunate collapse
similar to the former Jaya Super-
market.
The erection of a build-
ing from site preparation, to
construction, to completion is
a complex process. While the
submitting person is generally
the architect who is responsible
for the general health and safety
aspects of the building, there
are many other professionals
and government departments
who are responsible for various
aspects of the building before,
during and after construction.
For example, when a planning
permission or development order
is required for a development,
the submitting person could be
either a planner or an architect
who would be responsible only
for the planning aspects such as
plot ratio, car parking, height,
compliance, etc.
When it comes to a building
plan, the submitting person
could be an architect, a regis-
tered draftsperson or an engineer
depending on the type and size
of building.
Assuming the redevelopment
of the former Jaya Supermar-
ket site had an architect as
the submitting person, there
would still be infrastructural
and structural engineering sub-
We’re on the right track
to national unity
I REFER to reports on the
prime minister’s call for racial
acceptance.
As a loyal senior citizen,
I welcome, appreciate and
thank Datuk Seri Najib Abdul
Razak for urging Malaysians to
move from racial tolerance to
acceptance because he says it
can strengthen the country. He
has said “the move was neces-
sary so that no race would feel
it only needed to be tolerant of
others when it actually needed
to accept other races.”
Such a vital and meaningful
statement could not have come
from a better person than our
prime minister himself at this
crucial time when the need
for national unity takes centre
stage in our earnest efforts to
bring the country to a greater
level of progress and prosperity
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missions responsible by the
civil and structural engineers;
sanitary, plumbing, lifts and
Fire Department submissions,
by the mechanical and electrical
engineers, and needless to say,
the demolition submission and
works responsible by specialist
demolition engineers, etc.
Once works begin, the site
would be handed over to the
contractor who is responsible for
it. There are environmental and
safety measures to be observed
and all construction sites are
supposed to be covered by public
liability and other insurances to
safeguard the health and safety of
both the workers and the public,
including possible damages to
surrounding properties. At times,
the demolition could have been
awarded to a specialist demoli-
tion contractor who may not be
the main contractor for the new
building. In such a situation, the
demolition contractor would be
held responsible.
The demolition of a multi-sto-
rey structure is a specialised as-
pect of engineering consultancy
with its own rules and safety
measures by the Department of
Occupational Safety and Health
to protect both the workers and
the public.
There are several ways to pull
down a building, each requiring
different methods and implica-
tions. Each option requires
analysis of the structural system
before a “method statement” is
agreed upon. PAM would leave
this specialist area for comments
by our engineering colleagues.
In addition, according to the
Uniform Building By-Laws,
in the event of a failure to a
building, the submitting person
should inform the local authority
within one week of such failure
explaining the cause and stating
the remedial action/s taken.
PAM urges the public, media,
and the local council to be patient
in waiting for the full audit report
on the accident to be completed
by the parties concerned before
issuing any statements that could
further create confusion and fear
in the public’s collective psyche.
And until any party is found
guilty by the findings through
due process, we strongly believe
it is wrong to summarily imply
and implicate any party or firm,
and unjustly affect their reputa-
tion as well as the image and
integrity of the architectural
profession.
Ar Lee Chor Wah
President
Pertubuhan Akitek
Malaysia
as a cosmopolitan nation.
It is heart warming to note
that of late senior government
leaders have been stressing the
point that the key to the con-
tinued progress and prosperity
of our beloved nation and the
people is entirely dependent on
national unity.
Having noted that, I must
hasten to add that the master
key to all these achievements
and more importantly, the
goals of 1Malaysia is none
other than the policy decisions
made by the executive arm of
the government at the cabinet
level. In this connection, I’m
convinced that we are on the
right track to that much desired
goal.
S. Ragunathan
Petaling Jaya