Santiago said he and fellow lawmakers R. Sivarasa and Xavier Jayakumar in their capacities as MPs in the previous administration had been mediating between the two stakeholders since last year. — Picture by Zuraneeza Zulkifli

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 28 — Klang MP Charles Santiago today revealed that the Selangor government had suggested the 'Mid Valley solution' to solve the Sri Maha Mariamman Devasthanam temple issue in Subang Jaya.

“The solution we had put forward (for both parties) was the ‘Mid Valley solution’ where the temple becomes part of the complex. That was one possible solution of co-existing together with the commercial development. That worked well in Mid Valley.

“We proposed the idea to One City development Sdn Bhd but after it was taken over by (Phillippine-based) Ayala Corporation, they stopped talking to us. Whenever the Mentri Besar’s office tried to contact their chairman, he just replied with a text asking us to speak to their legal team.

“In other words, they are saying ‘We have consent judgement, so speak to our lawyers’,” said Santiago.

The DAP lawmaker told a press conference at Parliament today that the state, under former Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Azmin Ali and current Mentri Besar Amirudin Shari, has been assisting the Save Seafield Temple Task Force by trying to mediate with developer One City Development Sdn Bhd.

Santiago said he and fellow lawmakers R. Sivarasa and Xavier Jayakumar in their capacities as MPs in the previous administration had been mediating between the two stakeholders since last year.

“There were five huge plantations in the area with 15 to 16 temples but all of them (except for the Sri Maha Mariamman temple) were demolished and destroyed. So there was nothing left to recognise the contributions the Indian workers had made for developing the area.

“A Malaysian developer would understand that, the historical significance of the temple. But a foreign developer doesn’t understand the dynamics of local sensitivities. The lesson we can take from this is that local sensitivities must be put into part of a business plan.

“It’s not just CSR,” said Santiago.

One City is owned by Bursa-listed company MCT Bhd. In April 2015, the Ayala Corporation became a shareholder with a 9.16 per cent stake in MCT.

Six months later it controlled 32.95 per cent of the shares in MCT. Earlier this year it took control of the company with a 66.25 per cent stake.