KOTA KINABALU: Concerns were expressed by the construction industry that Kota Kinabalu City Hall would not follow the state government’s policy of enabling licenced experts to issue Certificates of Completion and Compliance (CCC) for completed buildings.
According to Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Dr Joachim Gunsalam (pic), however, the professional self-certification for building fitness applies to all local agencies, including City Hall.
“The guidelines would also apply to Kota Kinabalu City Hall. It was only launched on Monday, May 8. So it’s too early to tell if they have not followed suit.
“It’s supposed to apply to the whole state,” he said.
Dr Gunsalam was responding to the state government’s policy for allowing certified professionals to issue a Certificate of Completion and Compliance (CCC) for completed buildings.
The CCC replaces the occupation certificate issued by all local authorities in the state.
The issuance of the CCC would be by professionals, or the Principal Submitting Person (PSP), a group consisting of architects, engineers and plan drafters.
The CCC is part of the Sabah government’s Uniform Building By-Laws (UBBL 2022), which was gazetted on Dec 29 last year.
However, many in the construction industry were told that Kota Kinabalu City Hall would not adopt the CCC, which will still be the occupation certificate’s issuing authority.
The industry players lamented City Hall’s stalling of the implementation of the uniform building by-law, which is seen as progressive and apt to speed up development in the state.
Currently, they said building fitness certification could take months before occupation certificates are issued due to red tape and the lack of manpower in the local authorities to approve it.
Dr Gunsalam said that he would be following up on the matter.
Kota Kinabalu City Hall comes under the Chief Minister’s Department, while local municipal and district councils come under the state Local Government and Housing Ministry.
In launching the new building by-laws, Dr Gunsalam said the issuance of a CCC by the submitting person provides for self-certification and self-regulation, while the local authorities can carry out inspections during construction to ensure the project complies with the approved building plan.
“In case of non-compliance, the local council can withhold the issuance of the CCC,” he said.
The UBBL 2022 also allows local councils to impose a compound not exceeding RM5,000 and a penalty rate not exceeding RM100,000 against anyone who violates provisions under the UBBL 2022.
