TNB pole to be relocated but houseowner must pay fee

M.Sandra pointing towards the Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) electric pole which was built right in front of the main gate of her house. The pole is so close to her main gate that she cannot fully open one side of the gate.

JOHOR BARU: The hindrance posed by Tenaga Nasional Bhd’s awkwardly placed electricity transmission pole will no longer bother houseowner M. Sandra soon.

The 43-year-old flower shop worker said two TNB officials visited her home yesterday following The Star’s report of the matter on the same day.

Sandra was taken to the TNB branch at Pasir Gudang.

“They informed me that they would have to charge me a nominal fee,” she said.

Sandra lived with the pole, which obstructed her gate from being fully opened, for two decades.

A single mother with two children, Sandra claimed that the officials told her that it would cost RM10,000 to shift the pole.

However, TNB Pasir Gudang branch manager Mohd Isran Che Mustapha said that there was no record showing that TNB had sought RM10,000 from Sandra.

“There must have been some miscommunication somewhere. The average amount to relocate a pole is only about RM1,500,” he said

When questioned on why the pole was put there in the first place, Mohd Isran said that it was done after receiving approval from the developer and consultant.

“The complainant’s house initially did not have a gate as it is a low-cost housing area,” he said.

“We placed the pole there after getting the relevant approvals,” he said, adding that a contractor would relocate the pole once the price had been agreed upon.