DPM: Check incompetence

The Star 10/12/2002 By Izatun Shari

KUALA LUMPUR: The Land and Co-operative Development Ministry has been instructed to intervene in the handling of land matters following incompetence shown by some land offices. 

The directive was issued by Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi following reports that in some instances, it took more than 50 years for land titles to be processed. 

Abdullah, commenting on a report in Berita Harian yesterday that bureaucracy in land offices had led to the delay in processing of land grants, said the Government had many times emphasised the importance of improving efficiency. 

The paper had quoted Public Complaints Bureau director-general Datuk Wan Abdul Wahab Abdullah as saying that the bureau received a lot of complaints on delays in issuance of land titles, strata titles and transfer of ownership. 

On the bureau’s report that some land titles which had been applied for more than 50 years ago had not been processed, Abdullah said: “This is unusual. It shows that they (land officers) are negligent in performing their duty.’’  

“How can they take 50 years to approve some land titles?” he said after attending the Puteri Umno open house at the Putra World Trade Centre. 

“We do not want the delay caused by the land offices to result in certain development projects being stalled.” 

He said the offices should not provide excuses like lack of staff.  

Asked to comment on Suara Rakyat Malaysia’s (Suaram) latest annual report which said that the Government had exploited the Internal Security Act since the Sept 11 terrorist attacks in the United States, Abdullah denied that the Government had done so. 

“We have never used the Sept 11 incident as an excuse to detain people. We will ensure that human rights are not violated in Malaysia.” 

However, he said the Government also had to ensure that those who spoke about human rights did not violate the rights of others. 

He said that while human rights groups were more interested in the rights of certain parties, the Government was more concerned about protecting the community as a whole.