Tenants owe City Hall RM45m
The Sun 22/11/2005

PETALING JAYA: Errant tenants of low-cost houses owe Kuala Lumpur City Hall RM45 million in loan repayments and arrears in rentals.

Of this, RM20 million is owed by loan defaulters, and RM25 million by tenants who failed to pay their monthly rentals.

Speaking to reporters after launching the Fairlane Residences, mayor Datuk Ruslin Hassan said he was shocked to find that one tenant of the low-cost apartments owed City Hall RM15,000 in rent.

"For this to happen, there must be something wrong with the administration system or there must be something wrong with the efficiency of City Hall staff," he said.

Ruslin said he had instructed the department heads to resolve the matter.

"The rentals are used to improve facilities and make the residents' lives more comfortable. However, some of them don't get this message," he said.

"We can tell them and advise them but ultimately, it is up to them to pay."

Ruslin said legal action is also costly and "we cannot use public funds to haul them to court".

He said City Hall has 50,000 low-cost units, with another 20,000 to be built soon.