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22/11/1999 MM By Stephen Ng

It came as a cheer to Palm Court Condominium residents yesterday when they were finally issued their Certificates of Fitness.

Credit for this must go to the House Buyers Association which, despite waiting for its registration, is already actively looking into some common housing issues.

The cheer came as a result of the intervention of the association's pro-tem secretary-general Chang Kim Loong who contacted Bukit Bintang MP Dr Lee Chong Meng for help.

Palm Court Residents Association pro-tem chairman Steven Yong said owners waited for over nine years to get their permanent CFs from City Hall.

Resident Siva Nesan, 33, said they were given only temporary CFs, which expired last month.

"Our concern now is the strata title. Both the strata title and the CF are our rights, not privileges which we have to campaign for," he said.

House Buyers' Association president Datuk Zainuddin Bachik said the association was set up to look into common problems faced by house buyers.

"We will continue to lobby for a set of water-tight regulations to regulate the housing industry," he said.

"Often, officials at the Ministry of Housing And Local Government tell us that they do not have the teeth to bite. If that is so, they should draft up regulations that will give them the authority over developers.

If this is not so, said Zainuddin, the HBA will help them to do their job better and also apply pressure on the Ministry and its Minister to ensure that errant developers are taken to task.

The HBA, he said, is also setting up a reference centre where potential house buyers can check on the background of developers.

"We will carry out independent assessments of developers so that potential house buyers can refer to their record in the HBA office before making a decision."

Zainuddin said potential house buyers can also refer their sales and purchase agreements tot he association's panel of lawyers, headed by solicitor Bhag Singh.

"An official bulletin is also in the works and will be sent to members," he said.

Application for the association to be registered was filed with the Registrar of Societies last month. If approved, corporate membership is RM100 per annum while individuals pay RM20.

Admission fee for both categories of membership is RM5.

Inquiries, write to the House Buyers Association Pro-tem Committee at 31, Level 3, Jalan Barat, Off Jalan Imbi, 55100, Kuala Lumpur.