Powers of Director-General to direct taking of measures
17.—(1)  Where it appears to the Director-General that any premises, vessel or aircraft or anything therein is or may become favourable to the propagation or harbouring of vectors, the Director‑General may make a written order addressed to the owner or occupier of the premises, vessel or aircraft.
(2)  The order made under subsection (1) may direct the owner or occupier to carry out such vector control work or to take such measure, as may be specified in the order, with regard to the premises, vessel or aircraft for the treatment, destruction or removal of anything on the premises, vessel or aircraft, so as to bring the premises, vessel or aircraft into a condition unfavourable to the propagation or harbouring of vectors.
(3)  The Director-General may, in the order, direct that —
(a)the vector control work or any other specified measure must be commenced on or before a specified date and must be completed within a specified period;
(b)the vector control work must be carried out or any other specified measure must be taken at specified intervals over a specified period of time;
(c)the vector control work or any other specified measure must be commenced within a specified period of time and continued until the premises, vessel or aircraft or anything on the premises, vessel or aircraft is no longer favourable to the propagation or harbouring of vectors;
(d)any work being carried out on the premises, vessel or aircraft must be stopped either indefinitely or until the vector control work has been carried out or the specified measure has been taken to bring the premises, vessel or aircraft into a condition unfavourable to the propagation or harbouring of vectors; or
(e)the vector control work must be carried out or any other specified measure must be taken by a registered vector control operator or a licensed vector control technician.
(4)  The Director-General may, by written order, direct the occupier of any premises, vessel or aircraft to cover, within a specified time, and keep continuously covered, any specified tank, cistern, receptacle or any manner of container in or appertaining to the premises, vessel or aircraft, so that vectors are unable to enter therein, and where any premises, vessel or aircraft is unoccupied, the order may be addressed to the owner thereof as if the owner were the occupier.
(5)  In particular and without limiting the powers under this section, the Director‑General may, in the order, direct the owner or occupier of any premises to —
(a)drain any land in accordance with the specifications or in the manner specified in the order; or
(b)fill up inequalities in the surface of any land to a specified level,
so as to prevent the breeding of vectors or so as to keep the land permanently free from standing water to an extent specified in the order.
(6)  Despite subsections (1), (4) and (5), the Director‑General may, if in his or her opinion the circumstances so warrant, himself or herself cause any work or measure specified in those subsections to be carried out or taken and recover the costs and expenses incurred from the owner or occupier of the premises, vessel or aircraft, as the case may be.
(7)  Where an order served under subsection (1) requires that any work being carried out on the premises, vessel or aircraft must be stopped, and the owner or occupier of the premises, vessel or aircraft on whom the order was served fails to comply with such requirements, the Director‑General may make a complaint to a Magistrate’s Court.
(8)  The Magistrate’s Court may, upon application by the Director‑General, make a summary order for the ejectment of any person found carrying out or likely to carry out such work on the premises, vessel or aircraft.
(9)  Any person aggrieved by any order made by the Director‑General under this section may, within 3 days of the order, appeal in writing to the Minister.
(10)  Even though any appeal under subsection (9) is pending, an order made by the Director‑General under this section takes effect from the date stated in the order, unless the Minister otherwise directs.
(11)  The Minister may, on an appeal made under subsection (9), confirm, vary or rescind the order or make any other order which the Director‑General is competent to make under this Act, and the decision of the Minister is final.