Six Inanam shop owners compounded RM800: City Hall
Published on: Tuesday, February 27, 2024
By: Sidney Skinner
Some of those in attendance during the Operation take note of the extension which has been made to this lot at the HSK Light Industrial Centre.
City Hall issued a total of RM800 in compounds to six Inanam shop owners at commercial properties off Mile 7½ Jalan Tuaran recently.
A spokeswoman for the agency’s Environmental Health Department (EHD) said five proprietors were compounded RM100 each for violating City Hall’s Anti-Litter By-Laws 1984 (Amendment 2005), while the last found himself/ herself RM300 poorer for contravening City Hall’s Food and Eating Premises By-Laws 1966.
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“One of the litter-bugs was running an eatery while the remainder operated car accessory shops,” she said.
She explained that the former was found to have been channelling the soiled water from his/ her grease trap into the common drain outside the premises.
Syron (third from left) has a look at this manhole on Lorong Cempedak 6A, while EHD and Engineering staff look on.
“The car accessory shop operators were taken to task for releasing ‘cecair toksik (toxic fluids)’ in the public area and disposing of the remnants from the motor oil on the walkway near their lots.”
As for the Food and Eating Premises offender, the spokeswoman said the individual was found to have been operating illegally as he/ she did not have a restaurant licence.
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These violations came to light during a City Hall Operation – led by EHD Director Syron Tunggolou – to deal with several irregularities in this part of Inanam, including the recurring nuisance created by the overflowing manholes at the HSK Industrial Centre.
The agency has been attending to complaints about effluent soiling Lorong Cempedak 6A, on and off, since 2020. Sewage has thrice escaped onto this road over the past three months.
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The sewer pipes servicing the affected manholes have been found clogged with congealed fats, oils and grease, in most instances, and City Hall has faced an uphill task trying to prevent the stinking contents of these structures from overflowing, even when the sewage pump for the area has been operational.
Twenty one personnel with the EHD were involved in the recent Operation. They were joined by six Enforcement officers, as well as their peers from the Engineering, Licencing and Building Control Departments.
Besides HSK, the group also carried out inspections at the adjacent Golden Hill Industrial Park and EG Mall.
The spokeswoman said 39 eateries were checked in all, 33 of which were based at the EG Mall, four at Golden Hill and two at HSK.
She said pamphlets on the agency’s requirements concerning the installation and maintenance of the grease traps at these premises, were handed out to each of the operators.
“The traps at six eateries had not been installed according to our specifications while those at five others were not being maintained at all,” she said.
“One eatery owner did not even have a trap at his/ her premises.”
No one was penalised on this occasion but she warned that food operators could be compounded of up to RM500 for failing to maintain their traps or for deviating from City Hall’s guidelines as regards the installation of these gadgets inside their kitchens.
She stressed that the oily discharge entering the traps should be removed daily.
“Don’t hold off cleaning the traps only till it becomes necessary to do so.”
A pamphlet being handed over to the staff at this kiosk in EG Mall.
She said it was imperative that the unwanted cooking oil from commercial kitchens was dealt with responsibly.
“Proprietors should also avoid modifying the traps and adhere to our approved specifications.
“A ‘T-joint’ should also be put in place before the outlet from these gadgets and they should not be connected to the drainage servicing their premises.”
The spokeswoman said one shop owner was notified about addressing the shortcomings regarding his/ her workers, during the inspection.
“None of them had valid health certificates. We also found that they had not attended a food-handling course and were not wearing the requisite card at the time.
“The operator was given a grace-period in which to deal with this oversight.”
City Hall personnel in the midst of checking a grease trap at one of the eateries.
On top of this problem, the spokeswoman said the agency’s Building Control staff took note of two irregularities at HSK and another at the EG Mall.
“They observed that the piping for one lot at HSK was not as it should be and that another lot, at a different block, had an additional structure added on to it.
“In the case of EG Mall, they found that none of the kiosks had been approved by us.”
She said the Building Control Department was in the process of trying to identify the owners of these separate units so that they could take up these issues with them.
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