Bukit Kiara has often been described as one of the last remaining 'green lungs' of Kuala Lumpur, boasting many jungle trails, pristine rivers and streams and abundant native wildlife.

Minutes of government meetings obtained from the National Archives reveal the government later commissioned the services of US Landscape architects and planners Royston Hanamoto, Alley and Abey to lead a local team of professional firms and eminent individuals to prepare a 'botanical garden' master plan for the remaining 1,300 acres.

In 2012, the National Landscape Department erected a 4m fence around one of the lots to demarcate the park and separate it from Berjaya Corporation's Bukit Kiara Equestrian Club.

However, the Housing and Local Government Ministry said the fencing was to deter illegal rubber tapping and to expedite the transformation of the park into a world-class arboretum.

"Inside the fence" there is a small network of tarmac trails painted red and yellow and with poorly designed gutters that funnel the heavy rains into the middle of the road instead of into the drains.