Work on multi-million dollar mall stopped
By ANDREW FANASIA
AUTHORITIES have ordered work on a multi-million dollar five-story shopping mall in east Honiara to stop due to environmental concerns.
Guadalcanal Province issued the order after AJ Company, which is building the shopping complex at the eastern end of the Lungga bridge, reportedly failed to produce an environment impact assessment report.
This report is important to allow the Director of Environment to issue AJ Company its development consent.
The stop notice AJ was issued became effective on 12 June 2018.
It stated that AJ Company had not neither submitted nor received a Development Consent from the Director of Environment pertaining to their development and associated activities.
According to the Environment Act 1998 Section 3, 25 (1), a developer shall not carry on any development except in accordance with the development consent.
This is the second stop notice the company was issued, the first being on 17 April 2018, but work on the site is continuing.
AJ Company Managing Director Dawen Aron Zheng told the Solomon Star on Tuesday that the stop work order was a huge blow for his company.
“My local employees will be badly affected here,” Mr Zheng said.
“More than 40 of them who are currently working on the project will lose their job,” he added.
Mr Zheng said he had already done everything required of him under relevant laws before construction started.
He said just last month they submitted the Public Environment Report to the Director, Environment and Conservation Division (ECD).
The report specifically focused on the environmental impacts and other issues that could threaten the development site and its surrounding.
“AJ Company has complied with all the relevant regulations and most importantly we were given the approval by the Guadalcanal Provincial government to develop the site.
“With my understanding that that the site is outside of the town boundary and under the Guadalcanal authority, we started the construction,” Mr Zheng said.
He said the project has created numerous job opportunities for locals and will contribute quite significantly to the economy.
Mr Zheng, a long-time Honiara resident and businessman, said this is a big loss for his business because they will have to wait for the issuing of the development consent before work could resume.
“What concerns me is this project was made available through a loan from the Bank South Pacific and if we have to stop just to wait for the process it will affect AJ Company.
“And we must understand that the local employees are going to feel it the hard way because, they need money to support their families, their school children and their needs,” he said.
According to the Ministry, they made it clear that all the work must stop and allow them to work on the procedures before AJ Company can resume.
Employees working on the site told the Solomon Star yesterday they fear for their jobs.
“Our work on this project is now uncertain in light of what had happened,” one worker said.
“We are hoping working will resume soon,” he added.
“The worst that could happen is the project closing down and we lose our jobs.”
