The Penang State Government accepts the right of those who wish to kick out the state government by exploiting the tragic construction site accident in Tanjung Bungah that cost the lives of 11 construction workers involving 1 Malaysian construction site supervisor and 10 foreign workers. However, kindly get your facts right and not distort the truth.
The Penang State Government extends our condolences to all families of the victims and we are relieved that the rescue efforts have been able to successfully retrieve the bodies. In this respect, we thank the relevant authorities such as Jabatan Perkhidmatan Bomba, the police and National Disaster Management Agency (NADMA) for their successful efforts. The State Government has announced that a Penang State Commission Enquiry will be established under the Commissions of Enquiry Act 1950 to investigate into the cause of the construction work site accident and punish those responsible as well as to investigate any ancillary matters relating to the project.
We do not deny that there was a landslide on a construction site. Yet, certain parties have tried to overlook or even deny that it is a construction site accident. Further, the implication that the project was built on hillslope is untrue. The affordable housing scheme is built on flat land. This fact was even confirmed by the Institute of Engineers Malaysia that the affordable housing scheme is built on flat land and not on the hillslope (see statement attached). This construction site accident is an important work safety issue and to deny or ignore this as a work site accident will have legal consequences in terms of financial culpability and responsibility for the 11 construction workers who died. The Penang State Government hopes that the Penang State Commission Enquiry can also establish whether this housing project was built on flat land or on a hillslope as alleged, as well as any other matters including the approval of the project by MBPP.