“Act of God” or “Act of Man”?

The deadly landslide (with 31 deaths) at Batang Kali, Selangor, in December 2022 was recently blamed on “heavy and persistent rainfall” and not human negligence. This is according to “forensic analysis” of the incident, said the Deputy Prime Minister. Basically, this disaster was an Act of God.

The person most famous for claiming that tragedies were “Acts of God” was none other than the late Works Minister of 23 years. Satellite photos at the Batang Kali landslide showed that a large area had been cleared of its original forest. This area was below the state road between Batang Kali and Genting Highlands. Did the clearing weaken the slope?

Source: https://www.thestar.com.my

But why did the landslide occur above the farm where the campers were? And not elsewhere? This was not addressed in the report. There was an unusual sump where water pooled and it appeared to be damaged by some TNB lighting installations.

Poorly maintained drains along the Batang Kali-Genting Highlands state road could also be the likely culprit behind the landslide. Good drains would safely funnel rainwater away but blocked or broken drains would lead to water accumulating in the soil, thus weakening the slope.

But Malaysian local authorities lack the expertise needed to monitor and manage hill slopes. Seventy percent (of local authorities) do not have a database for the collection of information, 81 percent do not carry out slope maintenance, and 41 percent are not aware of the existing guidelines related to slopes.

On a separate but related matter, the Chairman of National Water Services Commission (SPAN) said 16 out of 55 dams in Peninsular Malaysia that are used for water consumption are more than 50 years old. And the authorities are uncertain about the usable capacity should there be a prolonged dry spell. Another seven dams are in critical condition and their structural integrity is in need of urgent attention. The seven dams that are in critical condition are the Pedu and Muda in Kedah, Mengkuang in Penang, Durian Tunggal, Asahan and Jus in Melaka and Linggiu in Johor.

We usually wait for hell to break loose and then blame “nature” or “Acts of God” rather than acts of man! This game to avoid responsibility has been repeated too often. Do we still do this in a Madani Government?

References:

Comment: ‘Act of God’ blamed again for disaster, Andrew Sia, Malaysiakini, 23 Oct 2023

SPAN chief rings alarm on Malaysia’s water security with seven dams in critical condition due to ageing structures, R. Loheswar, Malay Mail, 23 October 2023