No Compromise On Building Safety, CIDB's Stringent Standards Tightened – Nga

PUTRAJAYA, Aug 29 (Bernama) -- All high-rise buildings built since 2016 are required to comply with safety guidelines set by the Construction Industry Development Board of Malaysia (CIDB), which allow them to withstand earthquakes of 7 on the Richter scale and above, said Housing and Local Government Minister Nga Kor Ming.

He said the measure was important to ensure public safety was always a priority, even though Malaysia is not a country that is often hit by earthquakes or tsunamis.

"CIDB has set strict standards for the construction of new buildings, including high-rise buildings, since 2016. With these standards, we can assure the people that new buildings are safe, but we should never take them for granted. Misfortune has no warning," he told the media here today.

Nga said the minor earthquake in Segamat early this morning proved that Malaysia could no longer consider the threat as impossible, hence the people needed to instill awareness and always be prepared to face any eventuality.

He said the Urban Renewal Act which is being drafted also aims to address the safety issue of old buildings built before 2016, as such structures are at risk of collapsing in the event of a strong earthquake.

"Old buildings, including village houses and single-storey terraces, are not subject to the standards because they are not multi-storey buildings... hence, this is the importance of us implementing the new act for the safety of the people. In terms of safety, there is no compromise," he said.

Johor, particularly Segamat, has experienced five earthquakes in the past five days. At 4.24 am today, an earthquake measuring 3.4 magnitude was detected in Segamat.

The area had previously recorded four other earthquakes, two on August 24, and one each on August 27 and 28, with magnitudes ranging from 2.5 to 4.1.

Meanwhile, Nga also shared that Malaysia is now recording a proud achievement by having the fourth most skyscrapers in the world, but reminded all parties not to politicise the issue of building safety because it is a shared responsibility.

He said the MADANI government also stipulated that all people’s housing projects (PPR) and people’s residency programmes (PRR) must achieve a minimum score of 80 in the Qlassix (Quality Assessment System in Construction) quality assessment system used by CIDB, ​​which is a higher standard than before.

“The country’s first PRR will be launched later this year in Tambun by the Prime Minister, and it will be a new benchmark. We want this project to be better than the HDB model in Singapore, because Malaysians deserve to enjoy high-quality homes,” he said.

-- BERNAMA