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Apartment folks living in fear
07/08/2008 The Star By Salina
Khalid
MOST people dream about having a house to call their own, and residents of
Puncak Jaya Apartment in Desa Jaya, Kepong thought they were making their
dream come true when they purchased their units there.
But their dream almost became a nightmare as they were told that their units
had not received approval for occupation from the local authority.
Getting a first-hand look: Wong (left) checking the condition of the Puncak
Jaya Apartment during her visit there.
“They have been living here for more than four years but the building is
still without the CCC (certificate of compliance and completion) and the
residents are living in constant fear.
“They are also facing infrastructure problems and they have no one to turn
to,” Bukit Lanjan state assemblyman Elizabeth Wong said during a meeting
with the residents recently.
Wong said the previous management company had initially obtained a temporary
certificate of fitness (TCF) for the premises to enable the residents to
move into their units, but it was not renewed when it expired.
“So the first thing that we will do is to find out why the building did not
get the approval (CCC, previously the certificate of fitness or CF), and
then we will work towards rectifying the problem to enable the relevant
authority to award the CCC.
“We will meet with the local authority (the Selayang Municipal Council) soon
to make the necessary arrangements for this,” she said.
Also present at the meeting were representatives of the building management
and the Selayang Municipal Council (MPS) planning and health departments.
The meeting, which lasted for about three hours, had erupted into a heated
argument when some of the residents expressed their anger towards the
management over the lack of prompt action on some of their problems.
The problems include the plumbing, lift and parking in the apartment.
Wong urged the residents to pay the maintenance fees they owed the
management company as it would help them get the service they desired.
“I will come here more often to monitor the situation and make sure the
councillors do their job and help the residents with their problems.
“But, at the same time, the residents have also to do their part – to pay
their dues and stay united so that they can make decisions collectively,”
she said.
Meanwhile, building management company representative Saiful Azhar Shafie of
New Light Century Sdn Bhd said the company was facing financial difficulties
due to high unpaid bills owed by the residents.
“We cannot provide all the services the residents want because of
insufficient funds.
“At times, the company has to come out with its own funds to provide
services to the residents,” he said.
He also urged the residents to come straight to the management office to
lodge their complaints. |
