PENAMPANG: A resident at Lorong Lintas 2, Taman Lintas Phase 2, here, wants the Penampang Council to take action against his neighbours who he claims have turned their once-peaceful neighbourhood into a living nightmare.
“Our misery started when the house next to ours was rented out in July and transformed into a place for commercial cooking,” said the resident.
“We have lived in this residential area for 25 years with no problems until this neighbour came along and turned their rented unit into a makeshift commercial kitchen,” he added.
He claimed his neighbour engaged in late night and afternoon commercial cooking, there was constant noise from kitchen activities, repeated motorcycle traffic to and from the house at odd hours, loud cleaning of commercial kitchen utensils, persistent foul and oil cooking odour and uncontrolled waste management.
He also said that he has made at least four complaints to the Penampang Council which issued a notice to the tenants on Oct 7 however the notice appears to have had little effect.
“Even the house owner seemed to take no action to address the situation.
“The waste from their daily cooking will be thrown inside an uncovered rubbish bin. The smell is terrible and will enter the house when the winds blow. Most of the time, my front glass door and upstairs windows have to be closed.
“They come home late at night and are very inconsiderate by making so much noise, such as slamming the doors in the middle of the night.
“I talked to them, asking them not to make so much noise. Instead, they scolded me.
“We are like prisoners in our own house. We are forced to close all windows and doors, collect wet laundry immediately and endure constant noise and smell,” he said.
With the Penampang Council seemingly inactive, the resident describes them as a “toothless tiger,” unable or unwilling to enforce residential zoning regulations.
“The tenants continue their commercial cooking activities with no regards to the peace and quiet of other residents,” he said.
