‘Safety net only stopgap measure’

KUALA LUMPUR: The Federal Territories Ministry will move ahead with plans to install safety nets at People’s Housing Projects (PPRs) despite concerns that they will not resolve the problem of objects being thrown from the flats.

Its secretary-general, Datuk Seri Adnan Md Ikhsan, said the nets were a stopgap measure to ensure the immediate safety of residents, following the incident in which Form Three student S. Sathiswaran was struck to death by a chair tossed from the upper floor of Pantai Dalam PPR flats.

However, he said, the lack of civic-mindedness among PPR residents was the core issue that needed to be addressed by the authorities and members of the public.

“The residents’ way of thinking has to change. Even when the nets are installed, they will still throw litter from their flats. If that is the case, how many nets do we need to install? We also need to think about maintenance costs.

“That is why we need to work closely with resident associations and encourage residents to participate in programmes that we have outlined for them, including ‘gotong royong’ and educational talks.”

It was reported that Kuala Lumpur City Hall had begun installing safety nets at PPRs in and around Kuala Lumpur, including Pantai Dalam PPR.

“We have fitted nets at the area where the victim was killed, and we expect to finish the installation on Monday or Tuesday next week,” Adnan said.

“We will then set up nets at Block 2 and Block 100 of Seri Pantai PPR.”

He said some PPRs had turned into drug dens, which compounded problems faced by residents.