Resident unhappy with half- hearted work of grass cutters

A Kuala Penyu resident is unhappy about the half-hearted manner in which the unkempt shoulders of the road to his village were attended to recently.

After going uncut “for years”, he said the grass on the verge was finally dealt with earlier this month.

The parties who did this work, however, only trimmed a few centimetres of the road reserve and left the rest still overgrown, according to him.

The greenery on the verge of the access road to Kg Purun Ulu hasn’t been dealt with for years.

He said the cut grass was still lying along the road almost a fortnight later as they failed to return to clear these trimmings afterwards.

A Manggatal rate-payer, on the other hand, is equally displeased about the lack of maintenance carried out on the roadside drain outside her front yard.

She said the drain was clogged with weeds and suspected that the run-off was stagnating inside due to the foul smell which often wafted over from the direction of the structure.

Both individuals provided Hotline with the pertinent information – including the location of these irregularities – which was forwarded to the Kuala Penyu District Council and Public Works Department (PWD), as well as City Hall.

The flow of water inside this drain on Lorong Richdar 2 is being impeded by the thick growth of weeds inside

A Council spokesman said a check of its records revealed that the access road to Kg Purun Ulu was not listed in the agency’s register.

“We are as such helpless to intervene in the problem involving the garden waste,” he said.

“To our knowledge, the stretch is maintained by one of the PWD’s contractors.

“So, the most we can do is alert our peers at the Department’s office in the district about the resident’s concerns.”

A PWD spokesman said it would have to determine if the access road to the village fell under the agency’s jurisdiction.

“A preliminary check will be made if this stretch is named in our register,” he said.

He said several concessionaires, appointed by the Finance Ministry, were tasked with looking after the various sealed roads around Kuala Penyu.

When asked if the Department had a hand in overseeing the work performed by these firms, the spokesman declined to comment.

“Each of these companies have their own supervisors who are meant to double-check that their sub-contractors are maintaining the roads responsibly.

“This maintenance includes tending to the reserves on the road-shoulders in a timely fashion.”

JURID, who lives in Kg Purun Ulu, was initially overjoyed by the attention given to the greenery growing on either side of the access road to the village.

His jubilation, however, quickly turned to annoyance due to the “kerja secara semborono” (slip-dash way in which this work was performed).

“Less than 30cm on the verge was tended to,” he said. “The contractor’s workers should have at least dealt with a one and half metre section on the road-shoulder.”

He said the grass-cutters did not even sweep the trimmings into small piles after they had finished.

“The cuttings were just left behind all over the verge.”

Jurid said most of the dried grass had since been blown onto the road.

Manggatal homeowner, AUDRA, meanwhile, said the drain outside her front compound had not been maintained “for months”.

“A lot of sediment must have settled at the bottom of the drain which is why weeds are thriving inside,” she said.

“This vegetation makes it difficult for the rainwater to flow to the outlet. I think these fluids have become stagnant.”

Audra said many of those staying on Lorong Richdar 2 had taken to keeping the doors and windows towards the front of their homes closed because of the stench coming from the drain.

“We have to suffer the lack of ventilation in our living rooms just to prevent the bad smell from getting indoors.”

A City Hall spokesman said the government concessionaire was responsible for maintaining the front yard drains, while City Hall tended to those behind residences under its jurisdiction.

He said the former were cleaned according to a fixed schedule, with the same being done to the latter once every six months.

“We have called on the company to increase its maintenance efforts in Taman Richdar so that the public here get some relief from the drainage woes which the rate-payer has highlighted,” he said.

“By the same token, our workers will try to come in even before the scheduled cleaning, to deal with any complaints involving the back yard drain.”

Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.

Daily Express Malaysia

* Follow us on Instagram and join our Telegram and/or WhatsApp channel(s) for the latest news you don't want to miss.

* Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available.

Try 1 month for RM 18.00

Try 1 month for RM 18.00

Try 1 month for RM 18.00