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MORE than a month on, City Hall is still cleaning the moat around the “Tugu Pahlawan (warrior monument)” at Ujana Rimba Tropika, off Jalan Penampang, and plans to undertake a similar effort at Lintasan Deasoka, off Jalan Bandaran, in the State Capital. 

Lintasan Deasoka is the event space-cum-pedestrian plaza located beside the agency’s headquarters.

A spokeswoman for its Landscaping Department (LD) said this work got underway on April 7, with the moss and other foreign objects, including bits of rubbish, being cleared from the water inside the moat.

“The contractor, appointed to give the structure a thorough cleaning, was supposed to have completed this job by April 30,” she said.

“However, the inclement weather, which we have been experiencing for some time now, has held up this work.  

“The moat keeps getting filled with rainwater before the contractor’s team can get down to repairing and scrubbing the floor and walls of the structure.”

She said the final part of the work involved waterproofing the concrete surfaces inside the moat.

“One of personnel has been keeping tabs of the progress of this undertaking. 

“We hope to have the moat looking more presentable to the public by the end of June.” 

The spokeswoman admitted that keeping the moat clean was a laborious process.

“It can take anywhere between a fortnight to a month to do this properly.

“Moss has a tendency in the water as it is a nitrogen and phosphorous rich environment. The dried leaves, which fall into the moat and decay in the water contribute to these conditions. 

“Add the substantial sunlight exposure to this and you get a better idea as to why the moss is flourishing.”

She said the body of water around the “Tugu Pahlawan” occupied a space of some 1,049.5 square metres, while Ujana Rimba Tropika itself, which was built in 2002, covered about 14.5 acres of land.

City Hall had previously admitted to using a pump to help control the quality and cleanliness of the water in the moat but this device was rendered out of order seven years.

“The pump broke down in a major way in 2017,” another spokeswoman said at the time. “The high cost of the repairs have held back our Engineering Department from getting the device back in working order.”

Where Lintasan Deasoka was concerned, the LD spokeswoman said a check was made of this part of the City shortly after the agency was contacted by the media.

“We were made to understand that the event space was looking a bit grimy, including the area where the fountain and ‘Tugu Peringatan Malaysia (Malaysia Memorial monument)’ were sited,” she said.

“The Hotline reader who made this observation was under the impression that the dirt may have become embedded in the surface of the floor due to the food vapours which permeated the space when the ‘Puasa’ stalls were operating here.”

“This individual felt that it was a shame to leave Lintasan Deasoka in such sorry state, as many tourists frequented the area to be photographed against the fountain and beneath the monument.” 

She said the Department’s personnel confirmed the unsightly condition of the floor at the event space and also the pavement in front of City Hall’s headquarters, off Jalan Tugu.

“We are arranging to have the floor and five-foot-way scrubbed down by the second week of June.”

On top of this, she said, the agency also intended to have a fresh layer of paint applied to the surface of the floor at Lintasan Deasoka.

“The relevant section is in the process of appointing a contractor to carry out this endeavour.”