by Parliamentary Opposition Leader, DAP Secretary-General and MP for Tanjong, Lim Kit Siang, in Petaling Jaya on Tuesday, 28.6.94:
Exclusive TV3 interview by Solicitor-General, Datuk Heliliah binte Yusuf that Ampang Jaya Municipal Council inquiry report into Highland Towers Tragedy not a final and authoritative finding most shacking and disappointing
The exclusive TV3 interview by Solicitor-General, Datuk Heliliah binte Yusuf last night that the Ampang Jaya Municipal Council inquiry report into the Highland Tower’s Tragedy is not a final and authoritative finding is most shocking and disappointing.
Datuk Heliliah said in the exclusive TV3 interview that the Ampang Jaya Municipal Council inquiry report is a mere preliminary finding which could be used as a basis for further investigations to establish whether there are any criminal or legal liabilities on the part of any parties in connection with the chain of events which caused the collapse of the Highland Towers Block A last December 11 which killed 48 people and Blocks B and C being declared unsafe for occupancy.
Datuk Heliliah’s exclusive TV3 interview raises many new questions, including the following:
* When the Solicitor-General said that the Ampang Jaya Municipal Council inquiry report is only a preliminary finding, does it mean that the inquiry finding may even be overturned by subsequent government investigations?
* Why did the Special Cabinet Committee decide on a form of inquiry into the Highland Towers Tragedy which is not a final and authoritative finding like that of a Royal Commission of Inquiry – but one which is a mere preliminary finding by the Ampang Jaya Municipal Council?
* Why is the Police taking such a long time to complete its own investigations into the Highland Towers Collapse Disaster. Is the Police waiting for the Ampang Jaya Municipal Council inquiry finding before proceeding with its investigations or has it conducted parallel investigations into the disaster?
* Was the Attorney-General’s Chambers consulted before the Cabinet decision to make public the Ampang Jaya Municipal Council inquiry report, and is any part of the Ampang Jaya Municipal Council report edited or censored before being made public in the next few days – whether with or without the advice of the Attorney-General’s Chambers?
The exclusive TV3 interview by the Solicitor-General, giving the Highland Towers residents and survivors the feeling that they are back to ‘square one’ more than six months after the Highland Towers Disaster, has made it more imperative that there be a full debate on the Ampang Jaya Municipal Council inquiry report into the Highland Towers Tragedy when Parliament reconvenes next Monday, so that the government’s handling of the entire tragedy to date could be fully scrutinised in the public interest.