FRIDAY-6th November 2007-NEW SEWERAGE MAINS TO MAKE KK CLEANER CITY

KOTA KINABALU:

City dwellers can expect a cleaner environment and beachfront with the new sewerage mains that would replace the current system along the Coastal Road from Tanjung Aru to Tanjung Lipat. The City Hall through funding from the Sabah State Government, will replace the existing undersized sewers, and expected to solve the frequent occurrences of overflowing manholes, blockages and pipe breakage problem due to old pipes.
Mayor Datuk Iliyas bin Ibrahim in announcing this yesterday, said with the installations of the new sewerage line that begins from the first manhole at Tanjung Aru First Beach, all the way to the Tanjung Aru Township and surrounding areas, it will divert sewage from these areas to the newly completed sewage pumping station at Harbour City in Sembulan.
The project is expected to be completed in 18 months. The first phase consisting of laying an additional main from Habour City to Tanjung Lipat, was completed on schedule and can be utilized once the whole network is completed.
Explaining the existing sewerage network, Iliyas said the current system catering for area ranging from Tanjung Aru Beach Hotel, Tanjung Aru Township and surrounding areas, is connected to the existing pump station near Wisma Muis. He said this old sewerage network is undersize and near its life span.
Thanking the State Government for the allocation to fund the new sewerage line from Tanjung Aru to Tanjung Lipat Coastal Road, lliyas said the project is also based on the City Hall Sewerage Masterplan which was completed by its own staff.
“Once the sewerage system is upgraded and completed based on our sewerage master plan, KK City shorelines will be cleaner as the new sewerage system will reduce direct discharge of sewerage from the drains into the sea,” he added. According to Iliyas, the sewerage system of the Tanjung Aru water village, which has been earmarked for tourism, will also be connected to the new sewerage system.
Meanwhile, Iliyas called on the business establishments in the surrounding areas of Tanjung Aru such as Shangri-La’s Tanjung Aru, Kinabalu Yacht Club, Waikiki Condominium, and others to connect their sewerage line to the new sewerage system after it is completed. He said the new sewerage line is laid out close to the old system to enable easy connections to the new system.

FRIDAY-16TH NOVEMBER 2007-HIGHER CRIME RATE, LOWER SOLVING RATE

Higher crime rate, lower solving rate But over 80 per cent of violent crime solved: CP
KOTA KINABALU:
The crime rate in the State between January and October this year rose by 8.25 percent compared to that during similar period in 2006, but State Police Commissioner Datuk Noor : Rashid Ibrahim is happy with the performance of his team. “I believe we have worked hard to ensure the safety and security of the people in Sabah is maintained. There may be an increase in crime rate but there is nothing that we cannot handle,” he said. Noor Rashid was speaking during the presentation of awards to the five best police stations in Sabah by the Malaysian Crime Prevention Foundation at the Senior Police Officer’s Mess in Kepayan here, yesterday. The five police stations are Tuaran, Ranau, Semporna, Menggatal and Tawau. There were 6,140 cases in the first 10 months this year, 468 more than the 5,672 cases registered between January and October last year. Violent crime rate in the first 10 . months this year increased by 9.7 per cent or 136 cases more than the 1,402 during similar period in 2006.
Property crime rate increased by 7.78 per cent or 332 cases more than the 4,270 cases in 2006. The solving rate, however, fell to 37.4 per cent in the first 10 months this year from the high of 55.7 per cent in the same period last year, but Noor Rashid stressed that it was still higher than the international standard of 20 per cent. “What is more impressive is that the solving rate for violent crime between January and October this year stood at 80.7 per cent, higher than that recorded in the same period last year at 61.4 per cent. Noor Rashid said transparency and more quality investigations were the key behind the increase in solving rate for violent crime, which averaged about 25 cases a day statewide. However, he stressed, they cannot be satisfied with the current performance but will strive harder to achieve a better crime statistics, maybe one to rival their counterparts in Singapore. Noor Rashid also stressed the importance of public cooperation in preventing and combating crime. “The police would never succeed by only relying on ourselves. Instead, they must have the help of the public. There was a time when police worked in isolation but now we have to work together; we thought that crime prevention was exclusively for the police to shoulder but not anymore,” he explained. He said the situation has changed as police are required to take on a more proactive approach instead of just reacting when a crime is reported. Police force needs to be able to anticipate crimes, thus the need for policemen to be constantly prepared, he said. “But we need the public to cooperate with us, including the State Government, its agencies and non-governmental organisations,” he said. Noor Rashid also applauded the efforts by MCPF, through its Sabah chairman Datuk Henry Chin, in spreading crime prevention awareness especially among school students statewide. The MCPF has so far managed to convince 176 out of the 204 secondary schools to set up their own Crime Prevention Clubs.

FRIDAY-16TH NOVEMBER 2007-HIGHER COMPENSATION FOR SIGNAL HILL RESIDENTS

Higher compensation for Signal Hill residents
KOTA KINABALU:
The residents of the Signal Hill squatter area are asking for a higher compensation from the company engaged to do road expansion work and a further extension to the eviction order issued by City Hall. Chin Fui Fu, a resident and spokesman for the group, said the current offer from the company is insufficient for them to rebuild their lives and they do not have enough time to move their belongings despite the extended eviction deadline on Monday. According to Chin, the initial eviction deadline was extended to Nov 3 with assistance from Resource Development and Information Technology Minister Datuk Dr Yee Moh Chai and Likas assemblyman Datuk Liew Teck Chan. “We sent another letter asking for further extension of the deadline but we did not get any official reply from City Hall. Suddenly they come in this morning (yesterday) and start tearing down our houses,” he said when met yesterday during a joint operation to tear down the houses. “We can understand that the Government wants to implement the (road expansion) project, but we have been living here for so long. This area has been up since 1963 and some of us have been here up to four generations.”
Chin, 42, said of the 18 families residing in the area, three have already left after receiving compensation of RMI5,000 each for two of the families and RM30,000 for the third. He added that they were offered new houses at the Telipok Ria low- cost housing estate, but many had rejected the offer as the area is too far from their workplace. “Since the company has given compensation, we are asking for that and also an extension to the eviction order so that we have enough time to move our belongings. “Initially the company promised RM15,000 each in compensation, but now they are only willing to give RM100,000 for all the 15 families which we don’t agree ... we need between RM4O,000 to RM5O,000 because we will have to rebuild our lives,” he said. City Hall enforcement division director Abdul Mukti Muklish confirmed the operation, which involved 10 City Hall enforcement officers, two police officers, two officers from Sabah Electricity Sdn Bhd and machinery contractors. “The eviction notice was issued in early October before HariRaya, The residents have been offered houses in Telipok Ria and while some accepted the offer, some of them rejected it,” he said when contacted yesterday. “The deadline was extended for two weeks (until yesterday). So far we have torn down two houses but the residents requested for an extension so they have two more days before we resume our operation on Monday. “I believe the rest of the residents have opted to take up houses at another low-cost housing project in Bukit Padang, which I was made to understand is expected to be completed by early next year ... until then the residents will either be renting houses or staying with relatives,” he said.