Tag: UBBL 34A

#tanyanajib

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak invited Malaysians on Facebook and Twitter to ask him questions from 4.30 pm to 5.30 pm today. The Twitter hashtag is #tanyanajib while questions through Facebook can be submitted at www.facebook.com/najibrazak. I have never seen a Twitter timeline scroll down so fast. Due to the overwhelming response, the time to pose questions was extended to 6.00 pm.

I thought that this would be a good opportunity to pose the questions on longstanding disability issues to him and see if he responds. These issues are, after all, not new but ones that have gone unresolved for the longest time. Will Najib address any of them? Time will tell. By the way, at this moment, #tanyanajib is trending in ninth position worldwide. We sure have a lot of questions for the Prime Minister!

#tanyanajib Why are roads in KL full of potholes? Dangerous to motorcyclists. DBKL not doing a good job.

#tanyanajib Why is Prasarana/RapidKL so reluctant in using non-step buses? We don’t need to reinvent the wheel. Look at Japan and Australia.

#tanyanajib Why is full relief on income tax not given to purchase of rehabilitative and support equipment for disabled people?

#tanyanajib Will you amend UBBL 34A to make it COMPULSORY for all buildings and street environment to have access for disabled people?

#tanyanajib Will the MRT be barrier-free?

#tanyanajib What is the govt doing to prevent abuse of parking and toilet for disabled people?

#tanyanajib Public transport is not accessible. Disabled people stuck at home. What is the govt doing to resolve this?

#tanyanajib Will Malaysia enact punitive anti-discrimination law to protect the rights of disabled people?

#tanyanajib Join OKUs on a wheelchair ride around KL to experience the mega-problems we face everyday. Not much has changed since Akta OKU.

#tanyanajib Is the govt changing “orang kurang upaya” to something more empowering? We certainly are not people of lesser abilities.

What is the govt’s plan in making Malaysia barrier free? If yes, is there a time frame to it? #tanyanajib @ShahrizatJalil

Disabled community let down by authorities’ lack of will, poor coordination: Komunitikini – April 28, 2010

Disabled community let down by authorities’ lack of will, poor coordination


by Erna Mahyuni on 28 Apr, 2010
in Cheras, Features, Other Areas.

Speaking to people with disabilities advocate Peter Tan, Komunitikini got the rundown on the current situation and challenges faced by the disabled community in Malaysia.

Tan, a trained peer counselor, said that despite existing legislation for building proper facilities for the disabled there was still a lack of accessible facilities for the community.

“My trips out are still limited to places that have some basic accessible facilities such as ramps, (disabled) toilets and elevators.” The lack of these facilities hamper Tan and others like him who struggle with an environment that does not take into account their challenges in doing something as fundamental as moving around.

“There is better awareness of (our) issues but the situation is not improving, ” said Tan. He attributed it to a general “lack of will” on the part of the authorities whether they were at federal, state or local levels to take the necessary steps to improve things.

Citing the existence of the Uniform Building By-Law 34A, which had been in existence since the mid-90s, he said that the law required new buildings to provide access for the disabled. Builds already completed or under construction when the by-law was gazetted were given three years to comply with the applicable standards for construction: Malaysian standards MS 1183 and 1184.

“15 years on,” he noted, “Many buildings still do not comply with those requirements.”

Another problem, Tan noted is the lack of enforcement of said standards.

“Compliance with the UBBL 34A is the responsibility of the local governments, but they do not have qualified personnel to ensure compliance.”

Of the newer buildings that do include disabled facilities, Tan said that often the facilities were not built according to standards. For instance, disabled toilet stalls that were too small, doors that open inside, ramps that were too steep were common problems coupled with street environments that Tan called “totally hostile to disabled people.”

He noted The Gardens at Mid Valley City as an example of near perfect accessible facilities. “If not for the ramp leading to the lift lobby at P2.” Tan said the ramp had a flaw that could cause a wheelchair to tip backwards.

What irks Tan is that though there may be accessible buildings, getting to them is difficult. “What we have here is an island of accessible facilities in an ocean of barriers, ” he said. He called it a circle of mobility that was, for most disabled people, broken in many parts.

Asked about what could be done about the situation, Tan said one step would be for the disabled to unite and find a common platform.

“Many are interested in charity at the expense of advocating for the rights of disabled people.

“First, we need to come together and work together for the common good. Our voices cannot be heard if we don’t speak in a united voice.

“There are too many people trying to do the same thing,” he said.

MPAJ Launches Guidelines For Accessible Facilities

Garis Panduan OKU Bagi Mengemukakan Pelan (Perlaksanaan Pelan Berasingan)

In conjunction with its Hari Kesedaran dan Simulasi OKU last Thursday, Majlis Perbandaran Ampang Jaya also launched the Garis Panduan Orang Kurang Upaya (OKU) Bagi Mengemukakan Pelan (Perlaksanaan Pelan Berasingan). Translated it means Guidelines for Plan Submission for Disabled People (Implementation of Separate Plan). In my opinion, it should have instead read as: Garis Panduan Bagi Mengemukakan Kemudahan OKU or Guidelines on Facilities for Disabled People.

That aside, I am glad that disabled people have come to this stage in our advocacy for accessible facilities in the Ampang Jaya municipality. This is a very positive step for many of us who have been looking forward to such facilities. The guidelines have a checklist and specifications on ramps, pathways and corridors, stairs, doors and entrances, elevators, toilets, lobby and car parking spaces.

The most important aspect of this implementation is the requirement for the submission of a separate plan for accessible facilities. This is to ensure that the plans comply with Malaysian Standard MS 1184 before they are approved. This guideline left out Malaysian Standard MS 1183: Part 8: 1990: Specifications for Fire Precautions in the Design and Construction of Buildings Part 8: Code of Practice for Means of Escape for Disabled People which I feel should have been included.

Teratai ADUN Jenice Lee, MPAJ Council Member Chan Su Sann and MPAJ Jabatan Belia dan Masyarakat Officer Noryani Roslan have been instrumental in pushing this matter up to this stage. Nevertheless, I will raise a few points regarding the guideline as I feel that the requirements are not comprehensive or specific enough. All said, I am happy to see progress in this matter although the moving is slow from the first time I lodged a complaint with MPAJ in 2006.