DOSH MULLS LEGAL ACTION
Department to finalise investigation soon, says state director
THE Department of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) is expected to finalise the investigation into the fatal landslide at the Bukit Kukus paired road project construction site and possibly initiate legal action against the parties involved.
State DOSH director Jaafar Leman said the report would be finalised soon and it had been working with other agencies to conclude the report before taking further action.
“We are also finalising and preparing the documents and awaiting approval from our legal adviser. Then it will be referred to the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC).
“It is not easy to charge anyone in court. We need to prepare thoroughly and after that we have to submit it to the AGC for further action.
“We can’t reveal the details of our probe as well. We must be careful,” he said.
Jaafar said this during a site visit to a condominium project at Jalan Pantai Sinaran here.
In October last year, nine construction workers died and four others were injured when a landslide hit the Bukit Kukus paired road project site.
A stop-work order was initially issued for the project by the Penang Island City Council and DOSH.
However, both had been lifted recently to make way for mitigation works to commence.
Meanwhile, on another landslide in Tanjung Bungah two years ago, which killed 11 people, Jaafar revealed that one contractor was charged and slapped with a fine in court.
He said that DOSH was awaiting instructions from the AGC to charge the other parties involved in the incident.
On a separate note, state DOSH inspected 14 locations and found numerous offences under Op Cegah Runtuh Cegah Jatuh, which started on Feb 25 and concluded yesterday.
DOSH’s statistics showed a total of 338 accidents at construction sites last year.