Mohd Jafni (third from left) assessing the sewerage treatment plant with officials on a visit to Pangsapuri Desa Melayu.
Johor government will give priority to the repair and upgrade of the sewerage treatment plant (STP) at Eastern Dispersal Link (EDL) apartment blocks in Johor Baru.
State housing and local government committee chairman Datuk Mohd Jafni Md Shukor said the state had allocated RM25mil to upgrade the amenities at the apartments from 2022 through 2024.
“The upgrading works were divided into two phases, and the STP was not on the priority list. But recently, we have received complaints from residents wanting the project to be sped up.
“There have been issues with the STP previously, which is why the state government decided to allocate the funds.
“So now we will bring this project forward before its expected completion in 2024,” he said after visiting the EDL apartments in Kampung Bakar Batu.
Mohd Jafni said that as a temporary measure, the Public Works Department had issued an immediate cleaning notice to Kumpulan Prasarana Rakyat Johor (KPRJ) Builders Sdn Bhd.
“We will look at cleaning the STP at least every three months as a temporary measure, while waiting for the long-term project to be completed.”
He said he had discussed the matter with Johor works, transportation and infrastructure committee chairman Mohamad Fazli Mohamad Salleh to bring the upgrading project forward.
Mohd Jafni also said the residents had not fully set up their joint management body (JMB), which would be responsible for collecting maintenance fees for the strata scheme.
“For this, the state government through Johor Baru City Council and the State Economic Planning Division (BPEN) will help the residents establish their JMB.
“They have to take responsibility for the amenities, especially payment for maintenance fees,” he said, adding that without a JMB, the fees could not be collected from property owners.
There are 2,720 housing units in four sections of apartment blocks – Pangsapuri Desa Jaya (320 units), Pangsapuri Desa Dato Hajah Hasnah (1,120 units), Pangsapuri Desa Melayu (640 units) and Pangsapuri Desa Belantik (640 units) – with a combined population of more than 10,000.
Last year, StarMetro reported that Johor Mentri Besar Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi had said that KPRJ Builders was appointed as main contractor for the repair works on the apartment blocks.
“The repair works include the sewerage treatment plant, electrical system and wiring, as well as the mechanical and safety systems which include the fire prevention system and lift operations,” the Mentri Besar said.
