KOTA KINABALU: The state government has a new standard process chart to be used by all local authorities when approving development plans in Sabah.
Assistant Local Government and Housing Minister Datuk Zakaria Idris said the new measures is aimed at improving and shortening the time for considering and approving development plans in the state.
He said based on this process chart, the time frame for considering and approving straightforward development plans, that is, development plans that complied with the zoning and standards, was between three to six months.
“Complicated development plans which involve preparation of detailed studies such as Environmental Impact Assessment reports, shall require six to 12 months. However, this will further depend on the length of time needed for the preparation and approval of the reports,” he said in a statement yesterday.
He said the Local Government and Housing Ministry was striving to shorten the process of approving required documents for physical developments by reducing red tape.
Zakaria said this was adopted from resolutions concluded in a convention of local authorities held last year to be implemented this year.
“During the local authorities’ convention, several resolutions were drawn up that look practical and could be considered for implementation for the benefit of development projects and the people’s well-being.
He said one of them was to streamline the process of approving development plans, building plans and issuance of Occupational Certificates (OC) whereby a one-stop centre that would process and look into all the development projects applied by the developers would be activated.
He added that this would be done before the documents were sent to the central board in the ministry to be approved.
By adopting this approach, he hoped the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) in all local authorities could cut down bureaucracy when handling the development plans, building plans and issuance of OCs.
“The opposition doesn’t need to recommend a one stop centre to expedite the approval of development plans and related matters. It has been in the pipeline all this while. They probably picked up the idea when the ministry in question announced it during the State Legislative Assembly sitting last November.
“While real estate and property development is a vital economic activity, please remember that there are laws, rules and government regulations that must be adhered to.
“Please also remember that previously when the government was lax on the approval of development plans, all kinds of poorly planned real estate and housing developments with equally poor form, function and aesthetic value sprouted throughout Sabah, creating ‘Rojak Towns’,” he said.
He said the authority must also ensure that no property developments should be allowed near environmentally sensitive areas such as water catchment areas and wetlands.
“Some developers are simply guided by the bottom line. It is easier to build rows and rows of shop houses, with no proper drainage, with no open spaces, let alone landscaping. At the end of the day, does it give true customer satisfaction to the buyers and added value to the property market in Sabah?” he asked.
Zakaria said nonetheless the government collectively always listened and responded to the requests of housing developers and had come a long way in regulating the industry without unnecessarily burdening the developers while also not compromising the interest of the end-users or the people.
He said in addition, delays were caused by non-compliance to technical requirements and planning standards which resulted in revision and resubmission of plans.
“The real estate and housing development has a vital role in the development of Sabah. It is therefore very important that all stakeholders work together in pushing for progress in Sabah. As developers, please don’t allow yourself to be manipulated by parties whose primary interest is pushing for a political agenda,” he said.