MPAJ enforcement officers towing away an abandoned car in Pandan Perdana. — Filepic
THE move by Ampang Jaya Municipal Council (MPAJ) to impose a RM300 fee for the removal of obstructions within strata properties is drawing flak.
Strata Owners Association Malaysia honorary secretary Kelvin Chong said the joint management bodies (JMB) and management corporations (MC) cannot use maintenance funds, paid by the residents, to pay MPAJ to remove these obstructions.
“It requires approval during annual general meetings, which is quite tedious.
“If maintenance funds are used without committee approval, the residents can file a complaint to the Housing and Strata Management Tribunal, accusing the management committee of misappropriation of funds.
“They can even lodge police reports which will get the management committee in legal trouble,” said Chong.
Chong said spending maintenance funds on obstruction removal violated Section 21 of the Strata Management Act 2013.
“MPAJ should impose the fee on those causing obstructions, not on the JMBs or MCs.
“Don’t set a bad precedent by encouraging other local councils to charge the JMBs or MCs for everything.
“These management committees are elected by the residents to manage strata properties,” he said.
Royal Institution of Surveyors Malaysia president Adzman Shah Mohd Ariffin said MPAJ should consider lowering the fee since it possessed its own towing machinery.
“The fee will add a tremendous burden to the people, given the rising costs of living,” he said.
MPAJ had not responded to requests for comments at press time.
