Published September 5, 2008
Protesters want KL hillside bungalow project halted
Residents in suburb hand over papers to anti-graft agency alleging corruption
By S JAYASANKARAN IN KUALA LUMPUR

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RESIDENT activism in a middle class suburb of Kuala Lumpur could force a RM400 million (S$167 million) development of 21 bungalows on a nearby hillside to come to a grinding halt, illustrating a rare combativeness among Malaysians in the wake of the March 8 general election.
On Wednesday, nearly 20 residents from Medan Damansara, a leafy, upper middle-class suburb of retired government servants and younger professionals, descended on the Putrajaya offices of the Anti-Corruption Agency to hand over papers alleging corruption on the part of City Hall when it allowed the developer permission to build on the slope. The ACA has promised to get back in three weeks.
The resident's assertiveness has redefined the way hillside development is carried out in the capital and has put Kuala Lumpur's powerful City Hall under siege from relentless media attacks and on the defensive.
Moreover, government lawmakers, who would have normally defended City Hall as a rule, are seemingly sympathetic to the residents in a bid to win popularity. The area, normally pro-government, swung heavily to the opposition in the March elections partly as a result of the unpopular development.
Meanwhile, the protests have put the developer - listed Selangor Dredging - in a bind. It paid RM58 million for the land and claims to have spent over RM30 million since in infrastructure work. The company, which even advertised the homes in Singapore, denies any wrongdoing, arguing that hillside development is common in places like Hong Kong.
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The residents beg to differ, pointing out that the Cabinet of former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad banned development of any hillside with a gradient of over 30 degrees. The Medan Damansara slope is well over 39 degrees.
Development of the slope began in December last year but the residents continued protesting with their efforts intensifying after the general elections. In June, City Hall slammed the developer with a stop- work order after it determined that several by-laws had been contravened.
Since then, trees have fallen in the area followed by a massive landslide last week that nearly demolished two houses in the middle of the night.
'Only then did everyone, including the mayor, come out to see the place,' said Randhir Singh, one of the neighbourhood's most vocal critics. 'All of us snubbed him. Where was he when we needed him?'
The resident's tactics have been effective. Following the stop-work order, they wrote to the 17 government agencies whose permission is required in any urban development, asking about the Medan Damansara development.
Five agencies replied, some revealing that certain approvals hadn't been obtained for the development. These were the documents lodged with the ACA.
Even so, the residents aren't completely hopeful that they will win out in the end. 'Whatever the outcome, I think we have demonstrated one thing,' said Mr Singh. 'I don't think City Hall will ever take Kuala Lumpur residents for granted again.'