SIBU: The Ministry of Local Government may come up with standard guidelines for local councils pertaining to the installation of awnings.
Its Assistant Minister Datu Dr Penguang Manggil, said this was to prevent different councils having different guidelines and formats.
“It would be better for the ministry to come with the format so that, it is all standardised.
“Ministry (of Local Government) can look into this and come up with a standard guideline for all councils, rather than Miri has its own; Sibu has its own,” he told The Borneo Post.
He was asked if other local councils in the state were doing the same thing as that of Miri City Council (MCC), which had decided to provide guidelines for the installation of awnings at shop houses and commercial buildings.
“No, I don’t think they (local councils) have a standard format, MCC did it on its own initiative, but they have to abide by SPA guidelines.”
Towards this end, he stressed that guidelines must be backed by enforcement for it to be effective.
“Otherwise, it remains just a guideline if you don’t enforce,” he said.
MCC Mayor Adam Yii had said their decision to provide guidelines for the installation of awnings at shop houses and commercial buildings was to mitigate the problem of illegal awnings put up by business owners at their premises in the city.
Yii had pointed out that the issue on illegal awnings not only happened in Miri, it was a nationwide problem faced by all local authorities throughout the country.
Yii had advised owners to dismantle the unauthorised awnings if the structures were found to be unsafe to the public.