Local Government Committee chairman Jagdeep Singh Deo said MBPP, like any other local council, was only empowered to issue stop-work orders.

The quarry, which had not been in use for the past 20 years or so, was reportedly served with two stop-work orders earlier this year, which were ignored

“If the law says we have to issue notices, then we will do just that. Enforcement is determined by the law.

“If enforcement is not sufficient, we may look into enhancing our CCTV capabilities,” Jagdeep told a press conference here today.

The mayor, Yew Tung Seang, who was also present, confirmed that a stop-work order was served on the quarry operator on Feb 14 but it was ignored.

“Their operations are on and off. We conducted checks and sometimes found they stop and sometimes, they start again,” he said.

Yew said investigation papers were submitted to the council’s legal adviser for prosecution purposes, and a police report was lodged last month.

“Police have since asked for time and we are giving them some time to complete their investigation,” he said.

Earlier today, Sahabat Alam Malaysia attributed the incident as an act of wilful negligence by the enforcement officers of MBPP, as the quarry operators had gone against stop-work orders, but no immediate action was taken.