Section 20

Where the Commissioner or a Medical Officer of Health or any department of the Government has constructed any works with the object of preventing the breeding of disease-bearing insects, the owner and the occupier of the premises on which the works stand shall prevent the premises from being used in any manner that is likely to cause or has caused the deterioration of, or to lessen the efficiency of, the works.

Where any such premises are used in such a manner as to cause the deterioration of, or to lessen the full efficiency of, the works, the owner and the occupier of the premises shall, subject to subsection (4), be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $2,000; and the Commissioner or a Medical Officer of Health may enter upon the premises with such assistants and things as are necessary and execute any necessary repairs or work thereon and recover from the person convicted, in the same manner as if it were a fine imposed by a Magistrate’s Court, such costs and expenses as were thereby incurred.

Before any proceedings are taken under this section, written notice shall be given by the Commissioner or a Medical Officer of Health to the owner or occupier, as the case may be, specifying what the Commissioner or the Medical Officer of Health requires to be done or not to be done and giving such time as the Commissioner or the Medical Officer of Health considers necessary in a particular case for compliance therewith.

If the owner of such premises is by reason of any legal contract (not being a contract made with an intention to evade liability under this section) prevented from entering upon the premises to carry out the duties and obligations mentioned in subsection (1), he shall not be liable to any of the penalties mentioned in subsection (2), unless it can be shown that he has contributed in any way to the refusal or failure of the occupier to carry out those duties and obligations.

In this section, “owner” does not include the Government.