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THE Penampang Municipal Council will step up efforts to look after the greenery growing on road reserves under its jurisdiction, including those near the Towering Industrial Centre.

The Council has also called on the government concessionaire to exercise similar diligence when it comes to looking after the roadside drains in Oriental Park Phase 7.

This action was prompted by feedback from shop operators at the commercial centre about the lack of the maintenance carried out on some of the verges and drains in this part of Penampang. 

Some of these rate-payers were unhappy about the unkempt condition of the road shoulder between their shops and Jalan Penampang, saying that the grass in this common area was overgrown, with wild yams having sprung up in some places.

Others bemoaned the presence of weeds which had blocked sections of the drain along the stretch between their shops and some homes in Oriental Park Phase 7.

The proprietors feared that these irregularities could trigger a dengue-outbreak at the Towering shophouses, especially if Aedes mosquitoes began breeding in the drain and among the pockets of rainwater trapped between the greenery on the verge.

They related their grievance in writing to Hotline. This letter was forwarded to the agency.

A Council spokeswoman said a preliminary inspection was made of the reserve land and drain along Jalan Penampang and Lorong Towering, shortly after it was contacted by the media.

“Our staff noted the long branches extending from some of the trees on the verge, across from the shops facing the first road,” she said. 

“At the time, they also observed clusters of wild yams thriving on the road shoulder.”

She said parts of the drain at the side of several homes in Oriental Park, near the Industrial Centre, were found to be clogged with islands of water vegetation. 

A four-man team from the agency’s Landscaping Division subsequently attended to the overgrown greenery, according to her.

“They used ‘parangs (machetes)’ and handheld chainsaws to clear the wild yams and trim the branches of the trees.”

She said an open truck was deployed to facilitate in efforts to remove the garden waste generated by this work.

“Our staff noticed a private contractor and his/her workers cutting the grass on the verge along the main road around the same time.”

The spokeswoman explained that the Council was only responsible for tending to the greenery on the reserve land across from the shops facing Jalan Penampang.

This stretch falls under the purview of the Public Works Department, according to her.

When asked how often maintenance was carried out on the plants and trees growing on the perimeter of the shophouses, she said this was done as and when it became necessary to do so.

“Nevertheless, in light of shop operators’ feedback, we have asked our staff to be more mindful of the condition of this greenery. This will go a long way to ensuring that the common areas are kept in an orderly and acceptable condition.”

Regarding the blocked drain in Oriental Park, the spokeswoman said the government concessionaire had been apprised of the agency’s findings.

“The company has been tasked with cleaning the front yard and roadside drains which fall under the Council.”

The backyard drains at residential properties in Penampang were maintained twice a month by the agency’s Urban Services Division on a rotating schedule, according to her.

“The concessionaire’s team cleared the water vegetation from the drain in Oriental Park a day after learning what had happened in this part of the neighbourhood.”