Draw up guidelines for payment
08/05/2007 The Star

THE Penang Government should draw up new guidelines to ensure that flat owners pay their maintenance fees on time.

Komtar assemblyman Lim Gim Soon said many flat owners were reluctant to pay up as they blamed the management for poor maintenance.

“But it is a ‘chicken and egg’ problem; the management cannot maintain the facilities if there is a lack of funds. Ultimately, the residents are the ones who have to put up with poor faciltiies,” he said.

He said there were now more than 100,000 flat units in Penang, many of which were facing problems.

“It is crucial for the state government to draw out guidelines to ensure defau-lters settle their maintenance fees on time,” he told a press conference after inspecting the 20-year-old Taman Lem-bah Sungai apartment block. Also pre-sent were the apartments’ manage-ment committee chairman Jeffry Chng and secretary Charlie Chuah.

The management committee thanked Lim for helping them to apply for a RM50,000 allocation from North East District Office to re-tar the uneven ser-vice road.

Lim also urged the state government to study the possibility of subsidising maintenance at low-cost flats.