City Hall wants builder’s report
The Star 28/3/2005 By CHOW HOW BAN

CITY Hall will request a report from the developer of Villa Lagenda Condominium in Taman Desa Bakti, Selayang, on the incident on March 14 in which a section of the roof over the lift area on the 21st floor of Block A was blown away. 

This was the promise given by City Hall's Planning and Building Control Department building surveyor Zulkifli Nahar at a meeting with five residents and Kepong MP Dr Tan Seng Giaw at the City Hall building on Wednesday. 

The residents hoped that the local authority would investigate the incident and ensure that other parts of the roof would not come crashing down. 

In the incident, the roof landed on resident Ng Choon Lee's car which was parked in the car park on the ground floor. 

Dr Tan (right) handing a memorandum on the incident and other problems at Villa Lagenda Condominium to a City Hall Planning and Building Control Department officer. With him are several of the condominium residents.

Ng said the developer told him the incident was an act of God and it had no intention of compensating him. 

Another resident M.T. Tan said: “The sad thing is that the Certificate of Fitness (CF) was issued only about three months ago. If I was the officer who signed it, I would be ashamed.” 

Dr Tan expressed concern that the recent move to replace the CF with the Certificate of Completion and Compliance would cause more problems to housebuyers. 

He said there were already many instances of house defects and other housing problems under the CF system, and the new system, which empowered architects and professionals in the industry to issue CCC, might lead to more problems. 

Zulkifli said City Hall had to abide by the Federal Government's decision to abolish the CF system, under which local authorities were responsible for the CF issuance. 

Recently, Housing and Local Government Minister Datuk Seri Ong Ka Ting said the move, to be implemented from next year, would relieve local authorities of the task of issuing CF, thus reducing red tape in the approval of buildings.