Residents want state to help get strata titles for flats

The Star 24/11/2003

IPOH: Bercham low-cost flat residents want the state government to help them get their strata titles as the developer has been placed under receivership.

To make matters worse, a management company which took over the maintenance of the flats, had been doing a shoddy job and, among other things, was not supplying clean water.

Over 500 people are living in the eight blocks of the four-storey walk-up flats with two rooms each. Each household pays over RM40 for water and maintenance each month to the management company.

Action committee chairman Lai Yoon Heong said the residents did not know that the developer had gone under receivership until they did a check recently.

Most of the residents bought their units, each RM25,000, in 1989 and moved in in 1994.

“The developer failed to submit the land title to the land office for the purpose of sub-division but no action was taken by the state and local authorities.

“I was also informed that the outstanding quit rent owed to the state government was RM120,006.60 for the period between 1994 and 2003.

“Most of us are from the low-income group. We cannot and should not be made to pay for this amount as it is no fault of ours,” said Lai.

Lorry driver K. Krishnan, 35, said the water charges by the management were too high and that he was paying over RM50 each month. He said the water was also dirty and smelly as the tanks had not been cleaned for 10 years.

“When I questioned a staff (of the management company) about this, he stabbed me in the waist with a penknife,” he said, adding that the case was pending in court.

Another resident Lim Kwee Len, 38, said she spent over RM20 a month buying water for drinking and cooking, because her children had stomach pains whenever they drank the water.