South Okkalapa protesters want local gas station demolished

South Okkalapa residents protest against a local gas station on December 12, 2017. Photo: Htay Aung
South Okkalapa residents protest against a local gas station on December 12, 2017. Photo: Htay Aung

Around 100 South Okkalapa residents took to the streets on Tuesday morning to demand the demolition of a nearby gas station, which they say poses a fire hazard to the neighborhood.

The City Energy gas station is located at the corner of Parami and Pinya roads, near a glue factory.

“Residents are now worrying about fire hazards because the fuel station has been situated in the ward,” Nilar Myint, a member of the committee seeking to shut down the gas station, told Eleven.

The protest was held outside the offices of the ward administration and the township development committee, which approved the construction of the gas station.

In October, the plan to build the gas station was discussed in the Yangon Region parliament. During the discussion, MPs called on the regional government to only approve the station’s construction after it had received with the consent of local residents and after safety specific safety regulations were met.

“We didn’t agree with the plan to open the gas station because it is very close to the ward. I told them that it shouldn’t be built,” regional MP Moe Myint told Eleven.

The gas station was built anyway.

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