By Karen Bong
KUCHING, Feb 7: Kuching South City Council (MBKS) Mayor Dato Wee Hong Seng has hit back at criticism from an opposition member over a clogged drain at Lorong Resak, Kali Garden, stressing that accusations should not be “barked” without first verifying the facts, as the incident was caused by the failure of a private retaining wall and not neglect by the council.
Wee said debris that obstructed the roadside drain originated from a privately constructed brick fence wall at a residence along Lorong Resak, which collapsed and fell into the drain and onto the public footpath within the government road reserve.
The incident, he emphasised, did not involve the collapse or failure of public drainage infrastructure.
“What actually collapsed was not a public drain. It was a private retaining and fencing structure built on an earth slope to support a private residential platform,” he explained during his ShallWeeTalk live session today.
Responding to claims questioning MBKS’ effectiveness in addressing the issue, Wee elaborated that the affected property sits significantly higher than the road level, and when the private structure failed, debris spilled into the roadside drain, giving the false impression that public infrastructure had collapsed.
While the drain is under MBKS’ jurisdiction, he said responsibility for clearing the debris lay with the private landowner who caused the obstruction.
MBKS received a complaint at 9.53am on Feb 2 and conducted a site inspection at about 11am the same day, he said. A technical assessment carried out on Feb 3 confirmed that the drain remained functional and posed no immediate or significant flood risk to the surrounding area.
“The damage to the drain was minor and non-structural. There was no failure of the public drainage system,” he said, adding that a follow-up inspection on Feb 5 confirmed the debris had been cleared by workers engaged by the property owner.
He said the collapse also damaged a private water pipe linked to the house, further reinforcing that the incident was a private property matter that happened to affect the public road reserve due to encroachment.
Wee criticised what he described as misleading accusations disguised as questions on social media, saying MBKS does not always respond publicly to every post to avoid prolonging politically driven narratives.
“Before accusing the council, verify the facts. Debris does not just disappear on its own,” he said, adding that MBKS had photographic evidence showing the clearing works were carried out by the landowner.
While MBKS will always act to protect public infrastructure and continue monitoring the site, Wee stressed that private property owners must ensure structures supporting their land are properly designed, maintained and do not encroach into public reserves.
In concluding, Wee said MBKS had not neglected its duties and had responded promptly with inspections and precautionary measures, calling on critics to be constructive and fact-based.
“Targeting individuals does not benefit the people. Let us each do our job properly and serve the public sincerely,” he said. — DayakDaily
