Hello DBKL, is there a tree scam going on in Kuala Lumpur?
So who’s the lucky fellow who’s going to become an instant millionaire?
Mike Tan, The Ant Daily
Most KL-lites don’t really pay attention to the trees that line the sides of our roads and other public areas.
They form part of the background remaining largely unnoticed as we go about our daily tasks and routine. Until, of course, someone comes and chops the trees down.
That’s what happened to a group of residents in Taman Seputeh recently when the trees in public areas of their community – planted some 20 years ago – were slated for removal by DBKL. The residents association had no prior knowledge of the removal, and by the time a concerned resident struck up the courage to inquire about the matter, the removal process was well underway and several trees had already been felled.
What he learnt about the matter proved to be quite alarming.
He first began by speaking to the contractor who was supervising the tree cutting process at their community. He was told that the company, MTH Enterprise, were instructed by the DBKL’s landscaping department to remove the trees. He even produced a letter of instruction by the department.
The letter, however, did not bear the official DBKL letterhead and was handwritten. It was signed by Mohamad Haizam bin Jalis, a DBKL officer from the department.
The resident then arranged a meeting with Haizam, who told him that the removal was because the trees were damaging the walkways and are a danger to people. In addition, one tree had fallen down in November last year, damaging property.
So the department came to the conclusion to remove all the trees along Jalan Taman Seputeh, including the nearby playground.
This raises the question, why wait till 20 years to finally take action only after a tree has fallen? What has the department been doing all this time?
Why weren’t the trees checked from time to time to ensure that any trees at risk of falling down were removed? And for that matter, why can’t the trees be trimmed instead of being cut down wholesale?
If the situation wasn’t confusing enough, Haizam then requested that the resident sign a liability waiver absolving DBKL of all liability should any damage be caused by the trees if he was really serious about wanting the trees to remain.
At the end of this confusing conversation, the resident managed to get a week’s reprieve after submitting a letter to the department regarding the matter.
In essence, he has a week – until Aug 13 – to save those trees.
