The filthy condition at Kampung Sembulan Tengah.
KOTA KINABALU (Sept 22): Kota Kinabalu City Hall (DBKK) clarified that the notice of evacuation to Kampung Sembulan Tengah residents issued by the Land and Survey Department in collaboration with Kota Kinabalu City Hall was a routine enforcement action.
Mayor Datuk Sri Dr Sabin Samitah in a statement on Sunday said that the action is regularly undertaken by the local authority with the Land and Survey Department to enforce laws related to unauthorized housing settlements on government-owned land, the construction of structures without approval, and the enforcement of cleanliness.
The notice was issued to all homeowners who had built their houses on 105 land lots, which are currently under the ownership of the State Government.
Sabin said based on inspection records, most of these lots are occupied by tenants rather than the original owners, whose lease terms have expired.
There are also houses built without the prior approval of the original owners, he said.
Demolition has been postponed until another meeting with the original lot owners, scheduled for October 8, 2024.
Meanwhile, DBKK will continue to enforce laws in cooperation with other enforcement agencies to ensure cleanliness and safety are maintained.
On Saturday, Deputy Chief Minister III Datuk Shahelmey Yahya said DBKK had agreed to postpone the 14-day notices issued to Kampung Sembulan Tengah residents to evacuate from the area to allow for another engagement with the residents by October 15.
Shahelmey said this during an engagement with residents of Kampung Sembulan Tengah in regards to the 14-day notice issued by DBKK on September 19 to evacuate from the area to allow for the demolition of the 3.5-acre village for the development of an urban renewal scheme next to Sutera Avenue.
The postponement came after chairman of the Kampung Sembulan Tengah Residents and Welfare Association, Osman Omar Khan, appealed to the state government to allow the residents from 200 households to stay on at the water village.
