MyAdhan Blog

Link: Malaysia: Residents see red over telco tower

A telecommunication tower built beside a mosque and “disguised” to look like one of the mosque’s minarets is not fooling villagers staying along Jalan Madrasah in Kampung Manjoi here. The residents are unhappy about the 30m-high tower, erected just across the street from their homes, as they claimed that it had been built without their consultation. Computer technician Hasnul Tahar Abdul Wahid, 41, who spoke for over 40 families in the area, claimed that workers had set up the tower without approval from the Ipoh city council. “In fact, they finished erecting the main structure within 24 hours on New Year’s Eve. The distance from the tower to my house - the nearest - is only 13m,” he said on Sunday. Following complaints, Hasnul Tahar said the city council issued a stop-work order in January to the contractor and the committee of Masjid Ghufran to cease operations until they met certain conditions. “But work still continued. Earlier this week, we even saw them installing more telecommunication equipment at the tower summit,” he claimed. His neighbours, he said, harboured fears that the resulting radiation might harm their health. Winds strong enough to blow off zinc roofs have also been known to afflict the neighbourhood, and there were worries that falling debris from the tower might injure children and other residents, he added. “They are only trying to trick us by making the tower look like a mosque minaret,” scoffed Hasnul Tahar. On Feb 28, he and four other residents raised the matter with Datuk Bandar Datuk Mohamad Rafiai Moktar, who confirmed that the council had not approved the project. Datuk Mohamad Rafiai said the council had only received notice that the contractor was going to build a mosque minaret and not a telco tower. “If they want to build a telco tower, they need to get another permit. I have asked the mosque committee to submit their technical plans to us for study first,” said Mohamad Rafiai. According to the stop-work order, offenders who erect any building without permission from their local council can face a maximum RM50,000 fine or three years’ jail or both under the Street, Drainage and Building Act 1974.