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CF issued to apartments
despite no water, electricity supply
16/03/2009 NST By Noel Achariam
Segambut member of parliament Lim Lip Eng (second from left) with home
owners outside their apartment block protesting the non-supply of water and
electricity.
KUALA LUMPUR: Nearly a year after getting their keys, the owners of the
Medan Putra serviced apartments in Bandar Menjalara are still unable to move
in.
The reason? There is no water and electricity supply at their apartments
although the certificate of fitness (CF) had been issued late last year.
The 500 home owners are now demanding to know why the CF was issued before
the water and electricity supply was connected.
Their queries with the developer have drawn a blank.
Angry, more than 100 home owners staged a protest in front of the 30-storey
apartment block on Saturday.
"I spend about RM900 every month servicing my bank loan and paying the
maintenance fees. My apartment is completed, but I can't move in.
"I have no idea how long I can survive like this," said one of the owners,
Connie Lim, 29.
She added that at present, the electricity supply at the serviced apartment
was only from 9am to 6pm.
Another house owner, Chong Wei Yin, was disappointed with the developer.
"I was so excited last year when I collected the keys to my new home.
"But, when I went to my apartment, I saw that there was no water. I simply
don't understand, how can the CF be issued without water and electricity
supply?"
Chong said the owners had also been told to start paying their maintenance
fees.
"Why do we need to pay maintenance fees, when we haven't even moved into the
apartment?"
Segambut member of parliament Lim Lip Eng, who was at the protest, said that
he would look into the plight of the home owners.
"The CF is an official document issued by the local authority to acknowledge
that a certain building is safe and can be occupied.
"The local council should only issue the CF after all the conditions
stipulated have been met, but it seems in this case, they have issued the CF
without ensuring that the basic amenities are provided for," he said.
After speaking to the owners, Lip Eng and some of the home owners went to
the developer's office to seek an explanation.
However, he too failed to get any answers. Instead, he was told that there
would be a meeting between the developer and home owners next Wednesday and
he was welcomed to attend it.
Things, however, nearly turned ugly when Lip Eng and the home owners were
leaving the office.
Lip Eng and the home owners had gathered in front of the office to enable
press photographers to take pictures when an employee from the developer's
office rushed out and confronted them.
The man started shouting at the home owners who were brandishing placards
and told the photographers to stop taking pictures.
A scuffle broke out between the man and some of the house buyers but Lip Eng
managed to calm the situation.
Lip Eng, meanwhile, said he would be contacting the local authority to
enquire about the CF issue.
Lawyer Derek Fernandez agreed with Lip Eng that the local authority should
not have allowed vacant possession before ensuring that the building had
water and electricity supply.
"City Hall has no authority to issue the CF if the basic amenities are not
there. Legal action can be taken against the developer. The local authority
must also issue an explanation why the water and electricity were not
connected before the CF was issued."
The developer, Sri Melinger Sdn Bhd, declined to comment. |
