Planning Digital Conference

28 & 29 March 2000

Shangri-La Hotel, Penang

Local Authority Networked

Development Approval System

Lee Lik Meng, Ph. D.

Associate Professor
School of HBP, Universiti Sains Malaysia
Mohamed Jamil Ahmad
Director
Penang State Town and Country Planning Department

Introduction
Electronic government (e-govt) is a flagship application of the Malaysian Multimedia Super
Corridor (MSC) project, propositioned to reinvent government and bring about fundamental
changes to the fabric of society in order to propel us into the information era. E-govt goes
beyond mere computerisation or transfer of the manual system into an IT-based electronic system
for carrying out the duties and responsbilities of government. It requires that services should be
more efficient and effective. It also envisages that new services, new information, new service
channels and improved service levels should be the primary products of this reinvention.
While the Federal Government has undertaken various projects to introduce e-govt at its new
offices at Putrajaya (such as the Pilot Project to develop an electronic planning approval system
with expertise from Singapore), various efforts are also being undertaken or implemented at the
State and Local Authority levels to integrate elements of e-govt into their work-processes. Most
of these projects are ad hoc and piecemeal, carried out at departmental or sub-departmental level.
Many have failed and have even tried again (sometimes, to fail in subsequent attempts as well).
Just as many are waiting in the wings eager to develop their own system to move their manual
processes into the electronic media. While it is agreed that failures are many in the IT world and
that it could take several attempts before success is achieved, failure also creates fatigue and fear
amongst the officers and will lead to disillusionment and disinterest or total shutting out from
further participation or leadership in pushing the electronic frontier in government. Some of the
reasons for the failures have been discussed by Lee, et al (1996a) but the most critical problem
for most government departments is that its officers are generally unfamiliar with cutting-edge
technology and are therefore unable to clearly and precisely specify the type of system to be

developed by their consultants or contractors undertaking the development of their application

systems.
This paper relies on some of the experiences with the development of electronic approval systems
to propose some basic guidelines and framework for interlinked multi-departmental development
approval systems for the local authorities.

The Development Approval Process

A major responsibility of local authorities is to plan and to enforce laws for managed and orderly
growth, especially of urban activities. The control of development is carried out through
numerous instruments of development approval spread over several stages, each stage requiring
input from multiple departments. Nevertheless, many local authorities lack technical and
professional staff to perform the required investigation and have to rely on external departments
(such as State Town and Country Planning Departments) for professional or technical advice.
Failing that, they perform only rudimentary examinations of development proposals. The
discussion in this paper focusses on local authorities which are structured into well-defined
professional responsibilities and staffed by in-house technical expertise.

Types of Approval and Departments Involved

The development approval process involves numerous steps (Lee, 1986) and very often starts
outside of the jurisdiction of the local authority. In particular, agriculture land must first have
their status changed through a process commonly referred to as conversion (legally called
change of category of land use) under the land law (National Land Code 1965). This approval
is sought through the District Land Office or the State Land and Mines Department. The views of
the local authority is customarily sought but the State Authority is not bound by the views or
advice from the local authority. Notwithstanding this, any decision by the State Authority binds
the local authority even if it contradicts the development policies and advice of the local
authority. This decision thus becomes the starting point for most applications for development
approval at the local authority level.
When the issue of category of land use under the land law has been resolved, the developer or
owner must then proceed to obtain several other types of approval from the local authority. The
first stop is the Town Planning Department to obtain planning permission. Planning permission
refines in further detail the type and intensity of various permitted developments on the proposed
site as well as provisions for community facilities and amenities and traffic flow. In most local
authorities, the planning permission is granted based on a layout plan and development brief
prepared by consultants to the project proponent. But in the process of evaluating compliance,
the application is also referred to various departments for comments and requirements. These
departments may include the building, engineering and health departments within the local
authority as well as external departments responsible for schools, drainage and irrigation,
sewerage, roads, environment, civil aviation, telecommunications and others. Aggrieved parties
to the application for planning permission may appeal the decision of the local authority. The
planning appeal is determined by an independent Planning Appeals Board with its secretariate
located at the State Town and Country Planning Department (STCPD). In such cases,
information must flow from the local authority to the Appeals Board through STCPD. The

decision of the Board binds all parties and must then flow back to the local authority for
implementation.
The next major step in the development approval process is the building plan approval
coordinated by the Building Department. Provisions in the Uniform Building By-Law (UBBL) is
the basis for investigating compliance (e.g. minimum floor area for bedrooms, thickness of party
walls, natural ventilation and lighting, etc.). A site plan indicating the exact location of the
building or buildings and their footprints accompanies the building plan. In housing schemes, the
original approved layout plan is redrawn to provide more precise and accurate details on building
shape, location, set-backs from property lines, distances between buildings, and road reserves.
Since layout is deemed a town planning activity, building plans are referred to the Town Planning
Department for confirmation of compliance with planning requirements. In the process, the Town
Planning Department will have to retrieve the approved layout, compare it with the layout in the
Building Plan, make appropriate recommendations and route back the building plan application to
the Building Department, often weighed down by the attached approved planning permission
(layout plan) file.
Once the second major approval has been obtained, the developer must proceed to secure several
other approvals from the local authority including approval for earthworks, roads and drains,
landscaping and structural drawings (sometimes submitted for record only). A typical flow of
approvals and departments involved is shown in Figure 1.

Data and Information For Decision-Making

Throughout the entire process involving multiple departments and stages, information is the basis
for all decision-making (figure 2). For instance, when a building plan is received by the Building
Department, a crucial decision must be made whether the building plan complies with the
approved planning permission. The more industrious amongst the Building Departments would
have a master index or map-based system tracking all applications for planning permission
referred to them by the Town Planning Department. A record on this master index or
development pressure map would trigger a search for details of the planning application or cause
the building plan application to be referred to the Town Planning Department for advice.
Building Departments which are incapable of maintaining their own development pressure
records would have to rely on the Town Planning Department to undertake the investigation. In
some situations multiple copies of the duly endorsed approved layout plan are distributed to
various technical departments for their own record and reference, presumably to provide better
and more accurate information for the respective departments future decision-making in relation
to development control. In practice, this paper-based manual system results in major problems in
maintaining multiple sets of records, requires substantial amount of manpower and effort, raises
issues of data integrity, and is generally slow in response time.
Free-flow of information would be ideal but in reality there are numerous obstacles including
dated technology (paper), rigid compartmentalisation of responsibilities, and perceived rights and
authority resulting in each department protecting its traditional areas of jurisdiction (in particular
data kept in departmental files).

External to Local Authority

EIA

Conversion

Planning Appeal

Appeals
Board

DoE

Land Office

Planning Permission

Planning Department

Building Plan Approval

Building Department

Earth Work Plan

Streets & Drainage Plans

Structural Drawings

Landscape Plans

Engineering Department

Construction
O.C.

Local Authority Approvals

Building Department

.
Figure 1 : Stages and Departments in Development Approvals

Unpleasant experience in centralised database systems have also discouraged further cooperation
amongst government agencies. For instance, in the initial stages various government agencies
may have enthusiastically participated by providing hardcopy data as well as manpower to
digitise the information. Subsequently however, they face bureaucratic obstacles in retrieving
even their own digital data from the central agency. The problem is worst if the data belongs to
another department or agency even though they are all participants in the central system for
information storage and retrieval.
Unlike the United States where tax-payers have the right of access to data collected through
public funds (which means data collected by any government agency) and have to pay only the
cost of reproduction, Malaysia follows the British model where government data is copyrighted
and protected by various laws, notably the Official Secrets Act. Hence, government agencies are
very protective of their data, especially data in digital format since the data is seen as a source of
revenue.
The Agriculture Department for instance refuses to sell its land use map in the GIS format in
which it is currently stored resulting in researchers and even compatriot government agencies
having to re-digitise the maps for purposes of analysis or study. The Survey Department which
plays a vital role in the development sector by providing cadastral (land ownership) maps are
already well advance in their preparation of cadastral information in GIS format. However, when
a local authority approached them for the digital copy of the cadastral map to provide the base for
a proposed planning system, there was much resistance. This leads to duplication of effort (e.g.
Syarikat Telekom had to spend a substantial sum of money to create the cadastral base for its
GIS-enabled utility planning and management system) and problems with data integrity. The
town planning administration is not spared from this preoccupation to generate revenue from
data. The Penang State Town and Country Planning Department is a case in point with its
complete set of Planning Appeals Board decision being sold only in printed format when it could
show leadership in IT and planning practice by placing the word-processed documents for the
benefit of the entire country (and even the world) using the World-Wide-Web for all to read,
research and analyse.
Certainly there are many enlightened officers in the bureaucracy who realise that data and
information must flow between departments for efficient and effective decision-making.
Traditions, practices and the laws are hinderances but creative use of state-of-the-art information
technology integrated into a well-designed development approval system can facilitate free-flow
and access to accurate and timely information for decision-making and at the same time help to
alleviate fears of lost of authority and responsibilities.

Planning Dept

Zoning Plan,
Structure & Local
Plan, Council
Policies

Details of Approval

Grant of Planning
Permission

Planning Appeal

applicant
conditions
approval data
location
layout plan (GIS)
conditions of approval

No of units,
Type of
Buildings,
Type of Use,
Community
Facilities, etc

Building Dept
UBBL, Laws,
Council
Policies

Building Plan (CAD)

Building Plan
Approval

Engineering Dept
Earth Work Plan
Street & Drainage Plan
Structural Drawings

building owner
conditions
floor area
no of units
type of use
site plan (GIS) with
location of bldg
conditions of approval

Flow of
Information
Between
Departments

Construction

Building Dept
Certificate of Fitness
for Occupation (O.C.)

Actual built-up area

Type of use
Names of Owners

Names of Owners
Assessed Value

Names of Owners
Rate Payable

Valuation Dept
Valuation List

Finance Dept
Assessment List

Figure 2 : Flow of Information during various stages of Development Approvals

Components of The Approval System

In designing and developing the multi-department development approval system, there are several
key components including :
a)
b)
c)
d)

workflow applications;
data model for information sharing;
the network (LAN, WAN and WWW); and
hardware and software to support the applications (client-server technology).

Workflow Applications
The term computerisation is often associated with the process of converting a manual paperbased process of work to an electronic or IT-driven workflow. While it generally captures the
essence of the exercise it is a much-abused term with many such computerisation projects merely
providing the means to record information but omit to integrate the workflow into the system.
For instance, the system may be used to register applications received from consultants and
developers. Then the entire process of evaluating the application is carried out the traditional
way. The decision is then recorded in the computer system at the end of the process. In other
situations the computer may be used to track the progress of an application as it goes through
numerous stages and rounds of evaluations and amendments. Unfortunately, these tracking
systems are also isolated from the workflow requiring hard-pressed staff to take on additional
duties of filling up paper forms which are then sent for data entry by the systems section. Such
piecemeal approaches creates a misinformed and disillusioned civil service, as far as IT is
concerned. Their first and immediate reaction to computerisation projects are typically that of
scepticism and disinterest.
Unlike systems for payroll and tax assessment which rely on batch-processing with very little
need for prolonged end-user interactivity, systems for development approval must integrate the
often complex process of evaluating development proposals.
The logical starting point for the development of the approval systems would appear to be the
identification of the tasks required for undertaking the job.
Text-book models for systems development would require the systems analyst to trace the
workflow through each stage of work, documenting the forms and information captured and
generated and decisions made in order to be able to translate it into an electronic process. This
requires the consultant to spend a considerable amount of time understanding and documenting
the workflow (see figures 3 and 4).
Documenting the existing workflow is generally not complicated. The challenge lies in reengineering the process to take advantage of capabilities and functionalities of various software.
This is where the systems developer and consultant faces the greatest challenge because what
works for a paper-based system may not be necessarily be appropriate in the electronic medium.
On the other hand, there are many innovative features which can be introduced to replace paperbased systems and more importantly to provide more funtionalities in the system. Generally, the
consultant can expect little or no assistance from the client since these government officers have

generally not been exposed to the capabilities of IT and have not had the benefit of experience or
exposure to computer-based development approval systems.
On the flip side, the consultants themselves may not have had the exposure or experience in the
development of similar systems and are burdened by unfamiliarity with subject matters, i.e. town
planning, architecture, engineering, land administration, government procedures, etc. There is a
case where the consultant/contractor for the development of some local authority system
eventually closed shop, unable to sustain the unexpected prolonged period of systems
development, partly because the client was unable to provide specific requirements for the
system. Numerous amendments to the system is the bane of the consultant/contractor.
The Selangor Electronic Planning Approval System (SEPAS) (for the Selangor State Town and
Country Planning Department) went through several major changes over a period of 2 years
mainly to comply with its re-engineering of the workflow to conform with ISO 9002
requirements. While the system has integrated the critical portions of the workflow, user
feedback after using the system continue to demand for more and better functionalities. This
year, when they are subjected to an ISO 9002 audit, it is expected that the system may require
further fine-tuning. The Town Planning Department of the Municipal Council of Penang Island
has had its Pilot completed in 1998 and expects to make revisions before it is fully satisfied. The
Building Department in the Municipal Council of Seberang Perai has made two attempts by
engaging consultants to develop a building plan approval system but both have been declared to
have failed to meet the expectations of the department. An in-house effort to develop the system
shows promising possibilities but the department lacks technical expertise in applications
development and will again be turning to outside help to make a fourth attempt. Hopefully, with
the two failures and the limited success from the in-house effort, the department will achieve its
goal of integrating IT into its workflow.
The bottomline is that there is no single best or correct way to design and develop a workflow
system. It is important for both the consultant and the local authorities to understand that the
work will have to go through several rounds of redevelopment. The problem for the consultant is
that of escalating cost. The concern for local authority is a system which satisfies their needs but
the problem is that they are not able to exactly tell you what is required. However, now that
many departments have achieved some measures of success, others will have less growing pains.
In the electronic workflow, we must rethink many of the practices in the paper-based systems. A
critical issue to be examined in the multi-department development approval system is that the
workflow crosses departmental boundaries. In the manual paper-based system, files and papers
physically travel from one desk to another and across departments. This notion of physical
movement seems ingrained in our mindsets as demonstrated in discussions with government
officers to develop a multi-department approval system in which issues were raised on how the
information say from planning approval would be transferred (electronically) to the building
department server because it will be required for processing of building plans later; or how
information on building plan approvals could be transferred to the valuation department for
purposes of assessment. This is a carry-over from the days when governments have to manually
tabulate data and send copies out to other departments and higher authorities to keep them
informed of development pressures. Alternatively, files must be physcally transported between
departments if information from the file is to be accessed. Government officers must get used the
idea that access to information does not require it to be moved and permanently stored in their
respective departments (see later discussion on data model and network).

Another critical issue, and hopefully one which will not persist for a prolonged period is the
legacy of the hierarchical system of administration with its many layers of superiors and subordinates. Fear of redundancy, lost of jobs and even lost of authority may result in this multilayer administrative structure being transferred into the electronic system thereby negating the
benefits of IT in terms of efficiency through reduced manpower needs as well as time required to
complete a task. In the short term, the consultant will have to put aside professional commitment
towards a more efficient electronic based system but there is the danger that unless government
departments are prepared to re-engineer their workflow to reduce the pyramidal structure required
to complete a task then the bureaucracy will continue to be bloated but still suffer from manpower
shortages in their professional group because because of greener pastures in the private sector.
Workers who are made redundant should be retrained for other sectors while others may have
reduced workloads presenting the opportunity for greater job-satisfaction and pursuit of nonroutine professional projects and advancement.

Data Model For Sharing Information

For a multi-department development approval system where each department will apparently
maintain its own server or servers, it is vital that a model for data sharing be agreed upon. In the
model, key information which are used by more than one department or for more than one task
will be identified. The custodian for that information must then be assigned. The custodian will
be responsible for its maintenance and updates while all other departments will have read access
or restricted ability to edit or update. As an example, the local authorities usually has numerous
locations where names of people and companies are kept. The first location is of course the
personnel section with its staff records for the entire organisation while the finance department
has another set for payroll processing. At the department level, each would have its own records
of its departments personnel, possibly used for leave record-keeping or used in assigning officers
to specific task such as applications for approval of development or projects. Other sources
where names are kept include list of developers and consultants kept by the planning, building
and engineering departments separately, the list of owners of properties subjected to local
assessment taxes (valuation list) which is then duplicated in the finance departments assessment
list tracking payment history by property owners.
Another major category of information critical for development approval is land and building
ownership and its cadastral base. As local authorities, they most likely already have the complete
records of all properties in its locality. Many local authorities already have these individual
records in databases and this should form the basis for a GIS-enabled land records system which
can be accessed by the other technical departments, that is, as the focal point where all landrelated information are linked. In other words, a search of this land records system will lead to
information concerning assessment, planning permissions, building plans approvals, licenses as
well as information related to council policies on such land.
The other major categories of information related to development approval would logically be
stored and maintained by the respective departments given the mandate and responsibility for
each of the types of approval, namely, planning permission, building plan approval, certificate of
fitness for occupation, earthworks, streets and drainage, landscaping, structures, business
licensing and change of use.

Client

Examine and Register

Application
(3 days)
Circulate to Technical Depts
(3 days)

Technical Departments

Instructions for Action

(3 days)

Planning Evaluation
(14 days)

Receive Technical Comments

Type and Print Letter of

Recommendations
(3 days)

Registration of Plans and

Letter
(1 day)

Sign and Endorse Plan and

Letter
(3 days)

Limit of ISO
9002
certification

Send Letter
(1 day)

Client

Figure 3 : Workflow For Processing of Applications for Planning Approvals,

Selangor State Town and Country Planning Department (TCPD)
Source : Based on workflow for ISO 9002 certification awarded to Selangor TCPD

10

Applicant

AMENDED PLAN

Submits
PLAN

PRELIMINARY CHECK
(Basic Compliance)

Return to Applicant

No

Yes

DOCUMENTATION

Technician (Area)
. Create File
. Tracking Logs

Comments &
Requirements for
AMENDMENTS &
COMPLIANCE

Technician (Stats)
. Statistics Form
. Devt Pres Maps

Technician (DC)

DETAILED
CHECK

. Extracts Policies
. Checks Plan
. Compute Density
. Comments

Asst Town Planner

Town Planner

Director of Plg

. Confirms
. Comments

. Re-Confirms
. Comments

. Makes Decision

COMPLIED

FULL
COMPLIANCE

Asst Town Planner

. Prep. Draft Paper

Typist
. Types Paper

President
. Approves
Agenda

Steno

Director of Plg

Steno

. Approves paper

. Prepares
Agenda

SECRETARIAT

. Compiles
Agenda

President
. Signs Grant of
PM

Technician (Area)

Technician (Area)

Director of Plg

. Send Documents to
Applicant
. Circulate for
information

. Cops Approval
. Extract Minutes

. Signs Plan

. Prepares Letters

FINAL DECISION
BY COUNCIL

Technician (Stats)
. Update Stats &
Maps
File Closed

Figure 4 : Workflow For Processing of Applications for Planning Permission,

Majlis Perbandaran Pulau Pinang. Source : Lee, et al, 1996b.

11

There is no single prescription for which department should be the custodian of the various
categories and types of data since each local authority is likely to be structured a little differently
from one another. A general rule should be that whichever department is responsible for a
particular task should maintain and update data required to perform that task. Obviously, the
Planning Department as the starting pointing for most development approvals will not only store
data related to applications for planning permission but also information on council policies and
guidelines such as zoning, density and road-widening lines. And the Building Department will be
responsible for information on buildings (prosposed, approved and constructed) while the
engineering will keep and maintain information on approved roads, roads under construction,
completed roads and their associated maintenance records and names. The less obvious in terms
of clear responsibility relates to names of clients since each of the department will require read
and write privileges concurrently but this can be resolved by consensus by the various
departments.
The alternative the above proposed structure for a distributed database is to create a super
agency responsible for all digital data in the local authority. Many local authorities and heads of
departments have attempted such an approach but none have yet succeeded and are unlikely to
succeed unless such a super agency was created from its infancy (this is the model adopted in
Putrajaya).

LAN, WAN and WWW

To facilitate data-sharing and workflow in the electronic medium, a communications backbone is
required. A very basic setup only requires 3 components : a HUB, network cables and networkready computers running Windows 98 (or Mac OS). By connecting each computer to the HUB
using CAT 5 UTP or coxial cables, we create a Local Area Network (LAN) in which resources
can be shared. In particular, a development approval system would store the data in a database
management system (DBMS) on one of the computers (even one running Windows 98) with all
others connecting to the database, accessing the data on-line. All users will see the same up-todate information as and when the data is edited or added. A set-up at this level requires very little
technical skills. A technician can be easily trained to terminate suitable lengths of CAT 5 cables
(called patch cords not exceeding 100 metres in length) with RJ 45 connectors. Connect one end
of the patch cord to the network card and the other end to the HUB. Then switch on the HUB
and boot up the computer. Windows 98 will auto-detect the network card and setup the necessary
protocols for Windows Networking.
Across departments, a fibre-optic backbone connecting departmental HUBs would provide a
campus-wide network where all computers connected to this network would be able to access
shared resources throughout the organisation. In many organisations (including institutions of
higher learning) however, the culture of sharing information has not taken root resulting in tens or
hundreds of computers connected on the network but with very little collaborative effort over the
network. It is not uncommon for users who have been on the network for months or years to
suddenly discover that they could access files on their office PCs from another part of their
building by the simple act of sharing out folders.
Extending the network beyond the physical boundaries of a building or campus would create a
Wide Area Network (WAN). It requires a lease line from the telecommunications provider and a
router at each end of the line. Workers separated by vast distances would be able to see their

12

whole organisations network neighbourhood as though they were in the same building or
campus. Hence, all local authorities could be connected to the State Administration through such
a WAN allowing the State Government to access information on development approvals at each
of the local authorities as and when required without having to direct the local authorities to
compile regular reports for the States consumption.
WANs are expensive and dedicated to users for the same organisation (and its business partners).
The World Wide Web (WWW) on the other hand offers the world-wide audience access to
information published by local authorities. Developers and consultants would be able to
investigate planning guidelines with map-enabled webs or searchable database-driven webs
without having to travel long distances from their offices to the local authoritys office. They
could also track the progress of their applications through restricted webs from the comfort of
their office (anywhere in the world).
Driving the traffic across the network of course are the servers controlling access (security) to the
resources, processing the request for data and then sending the data or file to the computer which
sent the request. In a multi-department network with multiple servers and domains (groups) trust
relationships would have to be established.
Figure 5 illustrates a conceptual framework for implementing a networked local authority
approval system which is accessible also by other government agencies as well as the general
public and the local authorities other clients.

Client-Server Technology
A database management system is required to serve as the storage facility as well as engine for
retrieval of data captured during the process of evaluating development proposals. Popular
DBMS software include high-performance Oracle, Sybase, MS SQL Server and mid-range
products such as MS Access and Foxpro.
The mid-range products are deceptively simple to use and with perseverance officers in
government departments have been able to develop small systems for registration of applications
for approvals and partial implementation of the workflow for development approvals. These
efforts are excellent as starting points for moving their departments in the direction of e-govt.
However, a little knowledge is said to be a dangerous thing. On closer examination, the systems
were improperly structured leading to problems with data integrity. And because of the limited
nature of these applications users had refused to use the system complaining that the system
actually added more work because they had to enter the data but could not carry out their work
within the electronic system (the paper-based system being still intact).
In a client-server environment, there is a front-end (or a software application) where users interact
with the computer to carry out the tasks related to the workflow. On the other end of the network
is the back-end where the database engine seats on a server sending out data and files as
requested from the front-end.

13

Tabular
Data

Executive
User

GIS
Layers

Linked through
UNIQUE LOT
IDENTIFIERS

EIS GUI
DSS GUI

Front-End

Databases

Buildingg Dept LAN

Typical User
(Work Flow/Task)

MS Acess
GUI

Local
Authority
Enterprise
Network

Workstation NT
Server/
Back-End

GIS GUI

Valuation Dept LAN

Engineering Dept
LAN

Database Engine
Satial Data Engine
Intranet Engine

WEB GUI

Health Dept LAN

Front-End

Planning Dept
(Typical Departmental Workgroup LAN)

Local Authority
Campus-Wide LAN

State Government
& Other Government
Departments

Fibre Optic High Speed Internet Connection

Router & Firewall

Leased Line to create Private

Govt-to-Govt WAN

At Home
In the Office
On the Move

Dial Up or
Lease Line

General Public
Developers, Consultant,
Real Estate Agents, Lawyers, etc

MSC

Internet

Figure 5 : Conceptual Framework for the Network-enabled Development Approval System

14

Front-End
The front-end is typically a GUI-based (graphical user interface) application containing menus,
buttons and easy to use facilities to access information. For the workflow applications, these
front-end not only display data but can be configured to carry out routine as well as complex task
including error-checking, automatic updates of related records or undertake sophisticated
computations using the data input by the user or retrieved from the database. Text-based
interfaces are out-dated and appropriate only for simple operations (e.g. retrieving assessment
records by name of owners and updating the record of payment on-line).
Figure 6 shows an interface in which the user keys in information on permissible density and the
system computes the entitlement in terms of various types of residential units based on land area
proposed for development and the local authoritys guidelines. It even computes requirements for
low cost housing quota.
The interface was developed using MS Access 97 as the front-end for the MPPPs Town Planning
Department Pilot Project to develop an planning permission system. Figure 7 shows the menu
interface for SEPAS which was also developed using MS Access 97.
Other software are available for development of the front-end, including the popular Visual Basic.
For WWW applications MS Access 2000 has new utilities for putting data on the web. Frontpage
2000 has also strongly support for developing browser-based access to data through the Internet
using Active Server Pages (ASP).
These front-ends are installed on client machines, typically PCs running Windows 98. The
configuration for such client machines have improved tremendously and new units are capable of
undertaking the processing needs of the front-end applications. In many departments however,
old PCs running on 486 architecture or even the early generation Pentiums with low RAM are
constantly freezing up, especially when overzealous users load multiple programs and utilities
into its memory. At a minimum, 64 MB RAM, at least 15 inch monitor and a reasonably recent
Pentium processor (Pentium II) would perform well for workflow applications. If GIS
applications or multiple programmes are to run concurrently, the more RAM the better while the
latest Pentium III processor would tremendously improve performance. Departments purchasing
machines for these workflow applications should realise that they are not for ordinary wordprocessing functions.

15

Figure 6 : A GUI-Based Interface for computing density entitlement

Town Planning Department, MPPP. Source : Lee, et al, 1996b.

Figure 7 : Menu Interface for User-friendly applications

SEPAS, Selangor TCPD. Source : Panduan Guna SEPAS, 2000.

16

Back-End
In the mid-range, the DBMSs are accompanied by its own database engine. For example, MS
Access 97 (and earlier versions) used the Microsoft Jet Engine. Even though MS Access 97 can
be split up to a front-end and back-end, it is not a client-server but a file-server technology. When
a front-end request data from the back-end, the Jet Engine will send the entire file to the front-end
where all the processing will take place. This increases the load on the network and results in
lower configuration client machines being sluggish in response.
With MS Access 2000, MSDE, a true client-server technology is now provided. It is totally
compatible with and scalable to the high performance MS SQL Server.
The MPPP and Selangor TCPD planning approval systems as well as the MPSP in-house building
plan systems were developed on the MS Jet Engine. As a cost-effective technology, MS Access
satisfies government officers concern with seeing results for a reasonable sum of expenditure of
tax-payer funds. In terms of technological limitation, the MS Jet Engine is able to handle up to 2
Gigabyte of data (which is enormous considering that a database for about 100,000 properties in a
valuation list is known to occupy less than 100 Megabytes of storage space). A maximum of 255
concurrent users would satisfy any departments needs. Nevertheless, as a mid-range technology
performance could be sluggish for sophisticated or complex applications. In the world of
computers, a few seconds waiting for the system to response usually seems like eternity and
leaves the users perceiving that a lot of time is wasted just waiting. Disaster recovery for the
MS Jet Engine is also notoriously non-existent. Recovery in the event of data-corruption is
usually as good as the last successful back-up. Users have found out the hard way the need to
design and stringently implement a back-up strategy which will allow the department to backtrack several generations of back-up in the event of a failure or corruption of the database.
Apparently some locations are more prone to disasters either because of improper user practices
(typically improper shut-down) or the vagaries in unstable power supply or even defective
infrastructure which could lead to processes being constantly terminated mid-way when networks
connections are dropped.
Proper procedures will mitigate most of the problems discussed above but once a department has
had sufficient exposure to the system and is satisfied that further investment would bring further
benefits to the department and its clients, then it is strongly recommended that they migrate to a
high performance database engine such as MS SQL Server or even Oracle. MS Access 2000 now
comes with an easy to use wizard to upgrade and migrate the MS Jet Engine database to either
MSDE or MS SQL Server. Modifications may be required to the front-end applications system.
MS SQL Server will improve performance because it is a true client-server technology allowing
for part of the processing to carried out at the back-end thereby reducing network traffic as well
as reducing the computing resources required at the front end. It is also fault tolerant with a
transaction log which allows recovery up to the last update before the failure occurred.
MS Access 2000 as a front-end is able to access data from not only MSDE, MS SQL Server but
also Oracle and other commercial databases through ODBC (Open Database Connectivity)
technology.
In addition to the DBMS, various other software would be required on the back-end. In
particular a web engine will permit the publication of data for access through the WWW. In a
Windows NT (Win 2000) setup, the web engine would likely be Internet Information Server (IIS)

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together with Transactions Server to support database-driven web sites providing dynamic data.
IIS and Transaction Server comes free with the Windows NT (2000) licence.
Browser access to GIS maps would require an Internet Map Server engine but these systems may
require immense computing resources if a world-wide audience is to be accommodated. Several
Internet Map websites set up by GIS vendors are in the order of terabytes of storage space with
gigabytes of RAM and clusters of servers responding to requests for maps and related
information. Nevertheless, it is a technology which will become indispensable for greater public
access to development control guidelines (e.g. zoning, density, road reserves) and development
pressure data. Access to these data will allow for better informed decision on investment by
developers to curtail over-supply in the property industry. Local authorities can start with an
Intranet whereby information and data required for development control tasks can be accessed by
officers in all the departments through web-browsers reducing cost in terms of maintenance of
multiple copies of the information or paper-databases. Use of web browsers also removes the
costs for development of the client applications to access the GIS maps. Typically, a single
commercial GIS standalone license is about RM7,000 or more with numerous functionalities
which are not used for routine access to GIS maps. For the well-endowed local authorities, the
start-up cost is not prohibitive costing about RM100,000 for the web-based map engine and a
mid-range server (excluding cost of acquiring the GIS maps) to setup an Intranet for interactive
maps using web technology. With a lease line to the Internet, these maps will provide valueadded services to its clients (public, developers, consultants) as well as other government
departments and agencies.
Controlling access to the back-end resources will be the Windows NT Security system through
the creation of domains and groups allowing for a heirarchical structure of privileges from read
only to the ability to add and delete data to specific tables and databases.

What will it take to succeed?

So far, the efforts at the development of local authority development approval systems have been
isolated to single department efforts but there is growing interest to develop systems which are
ultimately integrated in terms of data access and continuity in the workflow from one stage of
approval to another. Dealing with several departments simultaneously however takes prolonged
negotiations since not all departments are inclined to start at the same time. The total cost will
also appear to be very high because of the combined cost of systems and infrastructure for
various departments. Even the cash-rich local authorities in Penang have been slow in taking the
decisive steps towards such an integrated system.
The migration to the e-govt will not be smooth nor will it be accomplished in a single master
stroke. The local authorities in-house technical and systems staff are generally either not
equipped with the knowledge and skills for systems development or are already heavily overloaded taking care of critical systems such as payroll and taxation systems. On the other hand
external consultants cannot sustain prolonged development cycles without an adequate financial
package. At the Federal level, priority has been given to getting a kick-start for the e-govt at
Putrajaya resulting in little or no funding to assist local authorities.
The Federal and State authorities must recognise that in the major towns and cities the local
authorities play a vital role in sustaining the economic health of the nation in their response to the
ups and downs of the economic cycle since the construction industry has more than 100 linkages

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to other sectors of the economy. Local authorities are usually blamed for being a major cause of
the inability of the private sector to response to market changes because of the long period
required to obtain numerous approvals. But with enlightened heads of department pushing for
ISO 9002 certification such delays will be a thing of the past. Information technology will be in
the forefront in achieving the ISO 9002 certification which will streamline the procedures and
guarantee decision is obtained within the specified time period.
Much in the same way that the Multimedia Development Corporation (MDC) and MSC project
has been providing matching grants to IT companies to develop innovative products and services,
a similar scheme should be actively pursued for the development of local authority development
approval systems. The product and experience from one or two local authorities will provide a
jumpstart to other local authorities which lack the funds to experiment or to sustain prolonged
systems development cycles. The Ministry of Local Government should play a key role in
putting forth this agenda to the Federal Government as well as serving as a resource centre for
sharing of information and experiences. It is not expected that application systems can be
directly implemented in all local authorities without modifications but lessons from successful
ventures will shorten the development cycle as well as guaranteeing a high rate of success for
other local authorities.
Even with adequate funding, the success of local authority development approval system will
nevertheless require major changes to the government practices. For example, the Prime Minister
(PM) of Malaysia has called for the doing away of the sulit syndrome (New Straits Times, March
9, 2000). This is common in the bureaucracy where government officers may routinely invoke
confidentiality and secrecy laws to deny access to information in department files. For example,
it is standard practice to stamp all technical reports for Structure Plans as SULIT. The PM
further implored everyone (including companies and universities) to kill the great information
hoard. Information, in particular digital information, must flow in the information age.
Otherwise knowledge workers will have sophisticated software purring away in state-of-the-art
computers connected to high-speed networks but will have no information to retrieve, manipulate
or analyse and no where to go in cyberspace. The effort in data-sharing must be initiated within
the government institutions, laws and practices. As a first step, copyright over government data
must be relaxed, access to non-sensitve government data guaranteed (e.g. digital versions of
cadastral maps, land use maps, census data, development approvals, etc) and made easy (e.g.
made available for download over the Internet), and cost of access reduced. Data collected from
research through government funding (e.g. Intensified Research in Priority Areas, IRPA grants)
should be place on university servers for download.
For the public and stakeholders in the development industry we should see more innovative
services which will make it easy for local authorities client to obtain approvals at reduced cost
and speedier decisions. Without providing better services and products, the development of
electronic approval systems will fail to tap the full potential of information technology.
Finally, we must not forget the so-called humanware. Only a small percentage of the civil service
can be considered to be IT-ready. Applications systems can be designed to make them idiot-proof
but then the users become mere robots clicking buttons without the ability to drill-down and mine
the data to analyse abnormal patterns and behaviour in urban development which may call for
appropriate response from the local authority to forestall a glut in certain sectors and location.
Non-systems personnel in technical departments may also have to be retrained to maintain
systems and perform surveillance duties to detect and troubleshoot problems. At the source of the
manpower factory, the curriculum of technical and professional schools must be revamp to

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prepare them to be knowledge workers for the government departments as well as the private
sector.

Conclusions
The road ahead for e-govt is exciting and holds much promise. However, the road is long and
there will be many hurdles which could potentially stifle progress. It is not enough to transfer
paper-based manual workflows into an IT-driven system. Successful e-govt will require reinvention of the concept of government. It demands that the government bureaucracy response in
a way that promises efficient and innovative services and guarantees access to digital information
which will help to promote the e- as well as the k-economy.
But as we move in that direction, we must also re-examine the modals of urban growth. Can or
should local authorities continue to base their decisions on urban development using the central
place theories predominantly used in most Structure Plans in Malaysia? Planners and futurists
are divided on whether the hierachical structure of cities will persist in the information era or will
die as distances become non-existent (Hall, 1999). That, however, is a topic for another seminar
paper.
References

Ghani Salleh and Lee Lik Meng (1998). Pengurusan Perancangan Bandar dan Sistem Maklumat
Perancangan. Seminar Kebangsaan Kerajaan Tempatan, 24 25 November 1998, INTAN
Bukit Kiara, Kuala Lumpur.
Hall, Peter. (1999). The Future of Cities. Computers, Environment and Urban Systems, 23, 173185.
IslandPPM. (1997). Development Approval System for Town Planning Department, Municipal
Council of Penang Island.
Lee Lik Meng, et al. (1996a). Development Of A Gis-Based Planning System for the Municipal
Council of Penang Island. Proceedings of the 2nd Annual GIS Asia Pacific Conference, 1820 September 1996, Putra World Trade Centre, Kuala Lumpur
Lee Lik Meng, et al. (1996b). User Needs Report, Pilot Project for the Development of a GISBased Planning System for MPPP.
Lee Lik Meng. (1986). Financial Contributions Imposed on Housing Development in Penang
State. Housing Developers Association, Penang Branch.
New Straits Times. (March 9, 2000). K-economy master plan by September. PM Outlines second
bold step to reinvent society. p 1.
Panduan Guna SEPAS (SEPAS User Manual). (2000).
Available at http://jpbd.selangor.gov.my/panduanguansepas/ (at the time of writing the
lastest version of the manual 1.1b had not be published by the department yet)
SEPAS version 1.1b. (2000). Selangor Electronic Planning Approval System, Selangor State Town
and Country Planning Department
Email
Lee Lik Meng
: lmlee@usm.my
Mohamed Jamil Ahmad : plan2@sukpp.gov.my
Web
: http://www.hbp.usm.my/ITSupport/
This paper is accompanied by a separate live demonstation of an electronic planning approval system.

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Friday, October 28, 2016

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