Courthouse decision stays
Published on: Friday, June 22, 2012
Kota Kinabalu: Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman said the State Cabinet has already approved Bukit Punai as the new site for the courthouse building.He said this was decided during a recent Cabinet meeting. "The Cabinet felt that the courthouse is an important building.
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We decided to relocate it to a strategic location at Bukit Punai," he said, after a live video conferencing with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak in conjunction with the launching of SME Week, Thursday.He said there should be no problem regarding traffic jams or other related problems if the courthouse is relocated there. Most important is that the building is located in a strategic place and that it was agreed to by all Cabinet members and the judiciary."We felt it is the most suitable site and they (State Cabinet and judiciary) all agreed. So, I don't think there will be any problems at all. All problems that were raised (by the various quarters), I believe we can resolve them well," he said.
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According to him, between six and seven acres on Bukit Punai would be used for the construction as well as parking spaces. Compared to the present courthouse site, which is only about 2.5 acres and too congested, he said the approved location has a bigger area not only for the building but also for car parks.
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The Sabah Law Association (SLA) had said the courthouse should be retained at its present location right in the centre of the city.It said the new location in Bukit Punai raises serious issues on accessibility and amenities. The public, it said, would be inconvenienced travelling to the area concerned not to mention that the site is also non user-friendly.Kampung folk attending court for legal and administrative purposes would also incur higher costs in travelling to the courthouse, it said. There would be difficulty in parking also as well as traffic congestion especially during the beginning and close of school hours, it said.Later in TUARAN, Musa expressed confidence in cooperation and support from BN leaders statewide to spread the message on the BN government leadership to the grassroots. "These will give confidence to the people that the BN government is a government that is responsible and acts on the wishes and needs of the people, this is important." He said this after meeting with local community leaders from four districts namely Tuaran, Kota Belud, Ranau and Tamparuli at the Seri Sulaman Community Hall."I am happy and I believe they will pass on the message to the people on the ground, which I believe they will accept with an open heart," he said, at the event attended by some 1,500 supporters. "I believe that as long as people know, realise and understand the initiatives and development initiated by the BN government, then we don't have any problem."I think the people of Sabah are conscious and very mature to assess what is good or bad and which government to support and which not to," he said, when asked whether Sabah would continue to be a stronghold for the BN. He said the people could see the government's track record and judge whether promises made were implemented, thus he is confident of success and urged for unity to work together. Musa, who is also State Finance Minister, said there is also strong cooperation between the State and Federal governments. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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