MBPJ’s many unresolved issues

Petaling Jaya is the nation’s newest city. Despite the relative calm on issues after the departure of the previous Petaling Jaya mayor Datuk Ahmad Termizi Puteh, the Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) has plenty of problems that remain unresolved. 

While mayor Mohamad Roslan Sakiman has made promises and is working towards resolving the problems he inherited, the people are still waiting for answers to several issues.  

Accounts and Assessment

Sparking off the frustration of Petaling Jaya folks was the increase in assessment rates. The 10% increase for all properties excluding high-rise properties had PJ residents up in arms when the idea was first mooted in November 2005 and implemented in February this year. 

Residents who managed to obtain the summarised accounts concluded that the increase was indeed unjustified, as the council had neglected to collect some RM37.2mil worth of taxes owed to it. 

The revelation did not reverse the increase and Mohamad Roslan had said he would not rescind the increase because of the administration problems that it would cause the council. 

Billboards and Sports Club

Uncovering the summarised accounts for the council also revealed other improprieties, namely the way billboard advertising was done and the dubious practise of donating large amounts of cash to the then MPPJ Sports Club. 

Cash sales of a building plans booklet that should, by right, go to council coffers were being channelled to the MPPJ Sports Club instead. 

The MPPJ Football Team was shut down to put an end to the dubious donations. 

However, the council still has not answered the question of what happened to the money that was donated and channelled to the MPPJ Sports Club, which is estimated at millions based on the number of years the football team was in existence (four years) multiplied by the number of billboards (numbering 365 presently) whereby it was reported that a donation of RM10,000 to RM80,000 was required for each billboard depending on its size. 

Town Planning and Traffic

New developments like the PJ8 project and the PJ Exchange project purportedly have traffic studies conducted and would have sufficient contingencies planned in their construction to ensure proper traffic dispersal. 

But when residents demanded for the traffic study report in a recent PJ Local Draft Plan amendment meeting, the developers could not produce it, causing more protests and vows from residents to oppose these projects. 

Potholes

Finally, there is the issue of the large number of potholes in PJ’s main roads such as Jalan Universiti, Jalan Gasing or any of the PJS roads. 

The increased traffic is wearing the roads faster than the council is paving the roads and accidents involving motorcyclists are increasing because of the potholes. 

“This place is famous for motorcycle rear bump accidents,” said Seapark Residents Association chairman Gan Keng, pointing to the junction of Jalan 21/1 and Jalan 21/21 that is inundated with indentations. 

Source: The Star

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Selangor government agencies owe RM15 million in assessment arrears to Klang Municipal Council (MPK)

Eyebrows were raised at the Klang Municipal Council (MPK) full board meeting on Thursday when councillors were told that a number of Selangor Government agencies jointly owed the council RM15mil in assessment arrears. 

Three of the agencies involved are the Selangor Economic Development Corporation (PKNS), Brisdale Holdings and Central Spectrum.  

Council deputy finance director Zahrin Md Nasir made the revelation after he was quizzed by councillors on the major assessment defaulters among property owners in Klang. 

The RM15mil that these agencies owe MPK is more than half of the total RM29mil owed the council by errant property owners.  

Zahrin did not name the other state agencies that had not paid up.

Source: The Star

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Selangor’s Exco Village – a waste of public funds

Khir the ineffective executive

Khir clamouring to repair public image

Selangor under Khir – sad state of affairs

Daim’s views on NEP

Touching further on the NEP, Daim said that while the affirmative policy introduced in the 70s had addressed poverty issues confronting the Malays, poverty eradication among other communities, which was the second limb of the NEP, was forgotten.

“There are poor Chinese and Indians and poor pribumis, as there are Malays. They need help as much as any poor Malay. Cases of poverty in any race should haunt our conscience. Poverty is a national issue, not a racial issue.

“The Malay problem is not confined to Malays. In the same way, an Indian problem is a problem for the Malays and the Chinese. It is a national problem. We operate as a unit,” added Daim.

Source: Bernama

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Hishammuddin promises allocation will reach all

“Being transparent is important because the amount allotted for education is so big and I do not want allegations that it did not reach target groups or our objectives because this blueprint will show exactly where the money is all going to.”

Hishammuddin made it clear that the various streams of schools were here to stay.

“For too long, people have perceived the various streams and types of schools as something destructive or to quote economists, a zero-sum game.”

Hishammuddin said he had to get the message across that the different streams were beneficial and were not going anywhere so that people would get past the “phobia or fear of the unknown” and move on to producing the very best students out of these schools.

Source: New Straits Times

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Hishammuddin allocates RM700 million for 15 Mara Sains colleges, RM 2 million for 96 Chinese schools

Hishammuddin says Malaysia’s education system ranks very high

When viewed in the context of our achievements vis-a-vis the other Commonwealth countries, it is heartening to note that our education system ranks very high in key indicators among our peers who share the same legacy, colonial past and system.

In the recent report by the Commonwealth Secretariat, Malaysia ranked very high in terms of our literacy rate and also participation rate at all levels of education.

It is, therefore, crucial that everybody appreciates the fact that we need not start from scratch. We have to build on these strong fundamentals, adjust where necessary, reform where needed and re-engineer what is not working.

Source: New Straits Times

Read the strong fundamentals:  

lecturers in public universities weak in English

Malaysia’s education system producing unemployable graduates

significant percentage of Malaysian undergraduates are not ready for degrees

Khairy ‘advises’ Barisan Nasional members not to push the envelope too far

Barisan Nasional members have been told not to take for granted the open attitude of the present leadership in allowing the airing of views. 

Barisan deputy Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin said some quarters had been testing the limits of the open political environment made available under Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi. 

“The overall openness is a good thing but we need to handle it properly and not push the envelope too far too soon because we are only a ‘maturing democracy’ and not one that has already matured over four or five hundred years,” he told reporters after launching the PPP Youth National Convention 2006 here yesterday. 

“Only a handful are abusing the privilege but they might take the chance to enjoy the openness away from the majority, so I would advise all involved not to sacrifice this positive effort,” he said. 

Khairy said that as a young democracy, sensitivity was high among the various races and religious groups and, therefore, limits on the type of issues that could be raised needed to be respected. 

He said Umno Youth, too, had been strict with those who crossed the line and had asked the Government to take action against them. 

Source: The Star

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Khairy pushed the envelope

Deputy Internal Security Minister blames public for snatch thefts

THE public is partly to be blamed for snatch thefts, said Deputy Internal Security Minister Datuk Mohd Johari Baharum. 

He said snatch thefts usually occurred when the victims were careless with their property. 

“Such an attitude gives snatch thieves the opportunity to strike,” he said when replying to a question from Senator Siw Chun Eam. 

Earlier, while replying to a question from Senator Datuk Rizuan Abd Hamid on snatch thefts, Mohamad Johari also placed the blame on women.  

“Sometimes, women like to carry expensive handbags and wear clothes that invite trouble,” he said. 

Source: The Star

another government official blames public for crime

Malaysia’s bloated civil service

The salary of the highest-ranked civil servant in Malaysia is 19.5 times more than his or her lowest-ranked colleague, according to 2006 data, Dr Lim Teck Ghee said.

The former director of Asli’s Centre for Public Policy Studies (CPPS) said this figure was far higher than in other Asean countries, as demonstrated by a 2004 study by the United Nations (UN) Public Administration Network (see chart). Malaysia, however, did not participate in this study.

“Data from other countries in Europe, Africa and Latin America on total allowances as a percentage of total salaries further indicates that civil service salary differentials in Malaysia have been considerably widened by the payment – to higher scale civil servants – of generous supplementary allowances not normally available in other countries,” he said in an e-mail interview.

Because public money was involved, Lim said a transparent, independent and fair review was necessary, especially by an independent commission with expertise, to assess – with the market as comparator – the content, skills and compensation necessary for civil service jobs.

“Unfortunately, the government is continuing to give the impression that it is ‘an employer of last resort’,” Lim said.

Lim, however, disagreed with Cuepacs’call for an additional 200,000 civil servants by 2020.

“In fact, the present size of our civil service needs to be reduced at all levels. The data (see chart) shows how bloated our civil service is by regional standards,” he noted.

“There may be a case for selective increase in some strategic sectors but overall we need a considerably leaner, more efficient and productive, and representative civil service,” he said.

Source: The Sun

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Najib wants Public Service Department to hire unemployed graduates

Local councils’ warts on full parade

The year began with a long struggle by Petaling Jaya residents to see the council’s accounts, following an 8 to 10% increase in their rates. They eventually succeeded, but under trying circumstances. The council also attracted criticisms for attempting to privatise the construction of billboards to a company and turning Petaling Jaya into a “Billboard City”.

There were also attempts to introduce rent-seeking measures to benefit a few in Subang Jaya and Kajang. Here, the local councils tried to impose a ruling requiring food operators to get certification from a few selected pest control firms in order to renew their licences.

The year saw spending sprees. Selayang Municipal Council spent about RM240,000 on study tours of South Africa and Mauritius. It splurged another RM40,000 on a “vacation-meeting” in Genting Highlands. Kuala Lumpur City Hall spent about RM94,000 to teach its officers etiquette and grooming. In Petaling Jaya, a proposed RM7.5 million budget for City Day celebrations was slashed to RM2 million after criticisms.

The person of the year is undoubtedly the flamboyant Datuk Zakaria Mat Deros, a Klang municipal councillor for 27 years. His and his family members’ total disregard for development control rules and paying assessment rates is the zenith of arrogance.

Four other Klang councillors were also found to have breached the very law they expected the rate-payers to obey. The decision of Faizal Abdullah, who also built an illegal house, not to accept reappointment was commendable, but this cannot be said of Zakaria, who also eventually declined.

On the whole, 2006 is marked by wasteful spending, poor governance and the hubris of power. There is also utter contempt for public outrage.

Unfortunately, while many Malaysians whine and complain about the local councils, there is too much complacency to cause concern. As such, the year closes without any promise by the authorities that things will change for the better. On the contrary, there is a disdain for contrary views and criticisms.

The joke is on the rate-payers. After all, they elected those who appoint the councillors and presidents or mayors.

Source: The Sun

Universiti Malaya Vice-Chancellor says public universities must tackle English weakness problem

Universiti Malaya (UM) vice-chancellor Datuk Rafiah Salim said that although this was not a major problem, public universities needed to accept the fact openly and overcome the problem. 

Rafiah: Says public universities need to accept the fact openly and overcome the problem

Her comments came after Higher Education Minister Datuk Mustapa Mohamed revealed the preliminary results of a study being carried out by UM, which showed that the command of English among some lecturers in public universities was not satisfactory. 

Rafiah added that she was not surprised at the results as the sample that was studied was the direct result of the education system that focused only on Bahasa Malaysia.  

“Only recently has English been given priority. This step is not to give English supremacy but because Malaysia is a trading nation and needs to use this global language,” she said. 

Source: The Star