One of the stalls at Pasar Besar Jalan Othman in Petaling Jaya covered in canvas after the trader received notice to vacate (pic, below) for failing to pay rent. — Filepics
PETALING Jaya City Council (MBPJ) will review its online traders’ rental payment system for markets under its jurisdiction.
The system now automatically terminates licences of traders who fail to pay rent by the end of each month, requiring them to apply again for the licence.
The move follows complaints from 47 traders at Pasar Besar Jalan Othman who claimed that their trading licences were terminated for defaulting on paying one-month rental this month.
Petaling Jaya mayor Mohamad Zahri Samingon made the decision to review the system after the matter was raised by a city councillor during the council’s full board meeting yesterday.
This is also to spare traders the process of reapplying for the trading licence after automatic termination.
Mohamad Zahri, however, said the traders at the market in PJ Old Town, Selangor, had failed to pay rental for September and October and that MBPJ staff had followed procedure when terminating their licences.
“The traders were given three notices, followed by notice of termination of licence,” he said.
City councillor Ahmad Akhir Pawan Chik, who raised the matter at the meeting, called for compassion.
“Traders at the market are daily wage earners.
“Many are willing to pay rent, but the online system barred payment after the due date.
“I suggest that as long as they pay within a stipulated time, they should be allowed to continue to trade.
“We can take a more lenient approach as these are long-time traders,” said Ahmad Akhir.
He highlighted that reapplying for licences was a hassle for traders as well as for MBPJ staff.
“Traders have to take time off to gather all the application documentation while MBPJ staff, who could be focused on other matters, have to deal with the paperwork.
“I saw the whole process myself and observed that it was time-consuming.
“I urge the matter to be reviewed, where traders can operate after paying the rent instead of having to reapply for the licence.”
When contacted, Pasar Besar Jalan Othman Market Association deputy chairman Zulkarnain Shahbhari said he was grateful to Ahmad Akhir for raising their problem at the meeting.
He said although most of them were in the process of reapplying for licence, MBPJ had allowed them to trade as it was the Deepavali festive period.
On another matter, Ahmad Akhir urged MBPJ to review plots of land that had not been surrendered to the city council, especially those that were neglected.
“One was recently hit by flash floods. Some have become hubs for rubbish and abandoned cars,” Ahmad Akhir said.
Another councillor, Tan Wei Kiat, raised the issue of poor budget planning in MBPJ.
“Some departments have run out of budget even before the year ends, so I urge for proper planning,” he said.
He also suggested MBPJ hold staggered programmes like workshops for the public throughout the year.
“Most of the workshops are held either at the end of the year, nearing public holidays or conducted too close to the next event,” he said.
