KUALA LUMPUR: Taman Fadason house buyers want representatives from the government to speak for them in a court case brought against them by developer Fadason Holdings (M) Sdn Bhd.

The developer has applied for judicial review of a decision of the House Buyers Tribunal, which gave out awards for late delivery of eight months to 42 low-medium cost apartment buyers.

The awards, which were handed out in February last year, ranged between RMl,000 and RM4,OOO each.

In the High Court case, besides the 42 house buyers, the tribunal and the Attorney-General's Office were named as respondents.

When the case came up on June 28, the respondents were not represented, and the court postponed the case to Sept 29.

Kepong MCA division public services and complaints chief Yee Poh Ping voiced the house buyers' concern during a press conference yesterday.

"Despite the developer naming these government offices as respondents, there were no representatives. There should also have been a representative for these buyers.

"Early last year, about 570 house buyers filed their claims to the House Buyers Tribunal, but due to lack of confidence in the tribunal's efficacy, despite its "Mudah, Murah dan Cepat" (Easy, Cheap and Speedy) motto, over 500 withdrew their claims.

"They opted for the developer's offers to settle their claims at a 20% discount, and those who battled on seem to have lost.

"The buyers and those who helped them address the issue are very upset," Yee said, adding that they, cannot afford to employ a legal representative.

He called for a "clear explanation" from the Housing and Local Government Ministry and for an amendment to the current ruling on awards to protect the interest of the house buyers.

"Currently, the tribunal hears cases and makes decisions, but it has no right to enforce the judgment.

In the event of a non-compliance of an award, the buyer has to submit a non-compliance letter to the tribunal," he said.

The tribunal will record it at a magistrate's court and proceedings that follow require the claimants to either represent themselves or appoint a solicitor.

Yee said after long proceedings at the tribunal, set up for the benefit of house buyers, they are now faced with more burdens.

"The tribunal was portrayed to be a one-stop solution for house buyers and now it washes its hands off the responsibility after a non-compliance of award.

Perhaps it should change its motto to "Susah, Mahal dan Lambat" (Difficult, Expensive and Slow).

"What is the use of its formation if it does not continue to help the people?" he questioned. Yee held the housing ministry's enforcement unit responsible for not carrying out its duty and for being reluctant to file a court case against Fadason for failing to payout the awards.

"We want Housing and Local Government Minister Datuk Seri Ong Ka Ting to handle this matter personally or to give us a reply by next week, failing which, we will make an appointment to see him," he added.