KUALA LUMPUR: Only two out of the six flood retention ponds in the capital have been approved to change the status for development purposes, the Dewan Rakyat was told on Wednesday (March 16).

       Deputy Federal Territories Minister Datuk Seri Jalaluddin Alias ？？said the two flood retention ponds involved were in Taman Wahyu and Delima in Kepong, with each being given approval on Jan 18, 2018.

       "There is no approval issued for the remaining four ponds (Batu, Nanyang, Batu 4 1/2 and Taman Desa). Nanyang pond is included in the Sungai Jinjang Flood Mitigation Plan,” he said in his reply to a question from Hannah Yeoh (PH-Segambut) in the Dewan Rakyat on Wednesday.

       Yeoh wanted to know the latest status and details of the development plans on the six ponds in Kuala Lumpur that have been approved for development purposes as stated in the Auditor-General's Report 2019.

       Previously, it was reported that the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission had opened an investigation paper on allegations that the status of six flood retention ponds here had been converted for development purposes.

       Jalaluddin said the Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) had appointed an independent surveyor to check that the development carried out by the developer was within the stipulated boundaries without entering the two ponds, namely Taman Wahyu and Delima.

       "The work was completed by the surveyor on Jan 13 and the report was submitted to the MACC on Jan 31. Now we are waiting for a complete report from the MACC,” he said.

       He said the proposed development would not affect the functional capacity and amount of water allocated in the two ponds. - Bernama