Ong: Shorter process in
approving certificate of fitness
21/8/2003
Bernama.com
A new and easier system in approving the certificate of fitness (CF)
for buildings will be enforced at the end of October, said Housing
and Local Government Minister Datuk Seri Ong Ka Ting. He said under
the new system, developers only needed to obtain approval from the
Sewerage Department for buildings of less than 18 metres high or
less than five floors for the CF.
For taller buildings, developers still had to get approval from the
Fire and Rescue Department as well as the Department of Occupational
Safety and Health, he said at a media conference after the
ministry's weekly meeting, Wednesday. Ong said that developers
previously had to obtain approvals from five other technical
departments namely Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB), Water Supply
Department (JBA), Public Works Department (PWD), and the Drainage
and Irrigation Department (DID).
Under the new procedures, developers no longer had to obtain
certification from the PWD and DID for the construction of any
building as they only needed the endorsement of the project's
architects and engineers for self-certified projects, he said. In
addition, the developers must get the "service level agreement" from
the TNB and JBA before proceeding with the construction of any
building to ensure that both agencies could supply electricity and
water upon completion of the project, he said.
"We expect by end of October no more (delays in issuance of) CF
problems which had been a common complaint among the public on the
quality (of service) and effectiveness of the public sector," he
said. He said: "The new system is more practical and effective,
reduces red tapes, increases efficiency and transparency, and avoids
corruption along the way." Ong said with the new procedures, all
local councils must set up a one-stop centre for handling CF
applications, and another centre at the state level.
He said this new arrangement would spur the building industry in the
country, which would help to stimulate the economy in line with the
stimulus package announced by the Prime Minister in May to boost the
economy. Asked on the safety of the building as the PWD and DID
would no longer be involved in the issuance of the CF, Ong said the
developers' architects and engineers who did the
"self-certification" would be responsible since they were governed
by their profession's code of ethics and acts.
"This has been done in advanced countries and safety has been
guaranteed," he said. He said, however, before a project was
approved, its building plans must first get government approval, and
this was the first layer in ensuring the safety of the project,
before CF was issued. Ong also said that the Cabinet meeting today
approved an allocation of RM21.2 million to assist 17 local
authorities to pay their outstanding debts to two waste disposal
management companies namely Alam Flora Sdn Bhd and Southern Waste
Management Sdn Bhd (SWM). – BERNAMA – |
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