Melaka grave desecrated due to road project
MELAKA: When Leow Hian Heng discovered that his greatgreat grandfather’s grave in Kampung Gangsa here had been desecrated, he lodged a police report.
Fifth-generation Leow said he was shocked to find the grave of Leow Poh Seng, a friend of Yap Ah Loy, damaged due to a roadwidening project in Jalan Gangsa here.
“On Feb 27, I was shocked to discover that someone had trespassed on to my family’s ancestral burial ground in Kampung Gangsa, Durian Tunggal.
“I noticed that the tombstone was missing as it had been dug out by irresponsible parties.
“How can they do this? This has affected the feng shui and the peace of my ancestor,” he said when met with his brother, Leow Hian Long, 50.
The 63-year-old contractor said the grave was the only one in the area as it was private land under the burial ground lot purchased by his late great-great grandfather when he was still alive.
The family claimed they were not contacted by the road contractors prior to the start of construction work and were seeking an explanation from the authorities, including the Public Works Department (PWD), on why no permission was sought for the removal.
“This is private land belonging to our family and used as burial ground.
“It should not be a problem to check with the Land Office and to contact us, instead of claiming that they could not locate the descendants of the grave.”
He said his great-great grandfather was an intellectual and a friend of Yap Ah Loy.
“My great-great grandfather was an important figure and one of Yap’s allies in the mining business.
“He had, on various occasions, hosted Yap at his house in Kesang here,” he said, adding that his great-great grandfather died in 1928.
He said the family had consulted temple priests, who said they had to rebuild the grave.
“Not only do we need to build new tombstones, but we also need to find dates and invite monks to help with chanting and the cost could go up to RM10,000.
“I will come out with an estimation and I hope PWD will compensate me.”