Appeal for a 'new lease of life'

http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/Streets/Saturday/Stories/2442469/Article/index_html
By Sheila Sri Priya



Taman Medan assemblyman Haniza Talha (third from left)
at a meet-the-resident session on New Year’s Day


PETALING JAYA: Owners of expiring leasehold houses in Petaling Jaya Old Town may soon be able to sleep in peace. The Selangor menteri besar is expected to look into the issue in two weeks' time and the residents are hopeful of good news.

The residents of leasehold houses were told about this by Taman Medan assemblyman Haniza Talha on Thursday. During a meet-the-resident session on New Year's Day at Pasar Othman, Old Town, Haniza said: "Edward Lee (Bukit Gasing assemblyman) is still gathering the required information. We are going to meet the MB in two weeks to discuss the land code issue."

Residents in Sections 2, 3, 4, and 14 are still waiting for an tension to their leasehold or better still, be issued with freehold grants. Many residents in Old Town have only five years left before the 60-year-old leasehold expires. Their plight may see some positive response from the menteri besar as Perak recently issued freehold titles to 11 homeowners in Kuala Rui near Grik.

On other issues, Haniza urged the Petaling Jaya City Council to consider issuing temporary business permits to hawkers. "It's better to have them do legal business then for them to be involved in illegal activities like selling pirated discs or worse, involved in serious crime."

Haniza also proposed four-storey flats and developing human capital development in Taman Medan. She pointed out that the affordable quality housing (AQH), concept is used in developed countries to provide a better environment in areas with social problems."

At present, the quality of life in areas like Taman Medan is deplorable. "Most urban slums areas have a high crime rate. Without proper guidance, the younger generation won't be able to get out of the circle of poverty and may turn to illegal activities," she said.

Haniza said in the United States, AQH houses were built in areas with community problems. "If an area is stigmatised by prostitution, houses like these are built with nice gardens and other supporting facilities. This leads to the community prospering and slowing down and eventually stopping undesirable activities."

Haniza complained that lifts in high-rise buildings were often not functioning and this added to the stress among residents. Also the high-rise buildings are unsuitable for a large community. Haniza said she will propose the AQH project in the next state executive council meeting.

Petaling Jaya Selatan MP Hee Loy Sian, who was at the meeting with residents, said he hoped that the government would not raise toll rates and water prices this year.

RM12,000 donation for Assunta Children Society

http://thestar.com.my/metro/story.asp?file=/2009/1/1/central/2882375&sec=central
By TAN KARR WEI

PEALS of laughter rang through the premises of the Assunta Children Society (ACS) in Petaling Jaya recently as Banana the clown entertained the children with his antics.

The fun-filled afternoon was organised by sports and recreational organisation Delta Club, which also donated RM12,000 to the society as part of its corporate social responsibility (CSR) programme.



Welcome support: Ewe (right) presenting the donation to Wong,
witnessed by Lee.

Bukit Gasing assemblyman Edward Lee witnessed the handing over of the mock cheque by Delta Club manager Ewe Teik Kwong to Sister Angela Wong from the Franciscan Missionaries of Mary, which runs the children’s home.

Wong said the ACS catered for 45 children from underprivileged families, mostly from the nearby Kampung Medan area.



Fun with balloons: Banana the clown giving out balloons to the children.

“They do not stay here but they come here for breakfast and lunch, and we have a study routine for them,” she said.

The objective of the ACS is to equip the children with better education so that they can have a better life.

After the cheque presentation ceremony, the children were treated to a lunch of pizza and fried chicken served by Santa and his Santarinas.

For details on the Assunta Children Society, call 03-7783 7105 / 03-7782 4600 or email acscie@tm.net.my.

Role of a State Legislator

Compiled by Joey

Your State Assembly Representative, or Ahli Dewan Undangan Negeri (ADUN), represents you in the State Assembly. They are your main link to the decision makers of the country.

A State Assemblymen and a Member of Parliament play similar roles as law makers or legislators. The former makes state laws, while the latter makes federal laws — both in accordance with the Federal Constitution.

For example, the state can pass laws on matters relating to land, agriculture, forestry, local government, riverine fishing and Muslim law, among others. It shares jurisdiction with the federal government on matters relating to social welfare, scholarships, protection of wildlife and town and country planning. State legislation does not cover areas such as internal security, defence, civil and criminal law, citizenship, finance, communications, health, labour and commerce and shipping industry.

As laid out by Dr Azmi Sharom, associate professor of Universiti Malaya (http://getanmp.blogspot.com/2008/02/mps-role-jaga-longkang-settle-saman.html), your ADUN's primary duty is to debate and vote on the proposed laws (known as Bills) to ensure that the best possible laws are made. Therefore, they should be well-informed about the Bills they are discussing to be able to debate intelligently.

Your ADUN also helps to check and critique the way government policy is made and implemented and to hold the Executive accountable and help prevent abuse of power.
Your ADUN may also raise issues that are of concern to their constituency, which may be discussed and even legislated. If you would like to raise an issue or a concern to YB Edward Lee, you can contact him at edwardlee.pj[at]gmail.com.

More on state legislative assemblies
There are 13 State Legislative Assemblies (Dewan Undangan Negeri or DUN) in Malaysia, corresponding with the 13 states. Each DUN comprises the head of state, a Speaker and elected representatives. State representatives are chosen via state elections, usually held simultaneously with federal elections.

In Selangor, for example, there are 56 ADUNs. A state assembly member's term is limited to five years. The state assembly must be dissolved before or upon expiration of its term for a fresh election to elect its members.

Local government councillors
For the time being, your state government also appoints local government councilors who make up the Local Authority, namely local municipal councils. Your councillors assist in the management and decision-making processes of the Local Authority by making by-laws and sitting on committees.

The Local Authority is in charge of the management of districts, towns and cities, specifically in the areas of: local environmental matters, licensing of activities, public health, cleanliness of public areas, public amenities, social services and land use planning.

If you have a problem with any of the above issues, you may contact MBPJ at their hotline 03-7954 2020 or your Bukit Gasing Councilors (http://edwardleepj.blogspot.com/2008/09/bukit-gasing-councillors.html).

Peaceful protest over development

http://thestar.com.my/metro/story.asp?file=/2008/12/30/central/2908589&sec=central
By TAN KARR WEI

PETALING JAYA residents ended the year with a strong message that they intend to be heard.
About 200 residents from the area turned up in front of the FAS field in Kelana Jaya to stage a peaceful protest against the development of a commercial hub consisting of:

• 20 units of 6½ storey shoplots
• 72 units of 4½ storey shoplots
• two 15 to 28 storey office blocks with 8 levels of podium
• 1 basement car park, and
• four electricity sub-stations.

The protest was organised by the All Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Residents’ Association Coalition (APAC).

Among some of the banners held by residents read “PJ is Overdeveloped” and “Dear developer, we fully support similar development if it is behind/in front/beside YOUR house.”

Taman Mayang Rukun Tetangga chairman Chan Chow Wang said that the jam along the LDP was unbearable and other developments in the area such as the Paradigm was already underway.

“We can’t even get in and out of Taman Mayang from the LDP. When we try to make a U-turn into our area, a stretch of about 500m would take us at least half and hour. To make matters worse, many people are parking along the LDP in front of the Kelana Jaya LRT station,” said Chan.

Chan said that the land was given to FAS to be used as a football field and it was unthinkable to convert the land for commercial use.

APAC chairman Liew Wei Beng said that they would submit an official objection to the Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ).

“We want this open area to be maintained. The development of this commercial hub will lead to further congestion along the LDP and increase traffic at the tunnel leading into Ara Damansara,” said Liew.

He added that the APAC would also raise the issue of land conversion from institutional to commercial without due process and consultation.

“The first development order was approved in 2006. As far as we know, none of the residents have been consulted before the MBPJ issued the development order then,” said Liew.

Petaling Jaya Utara MP Tony Pua said that the residents have spoken loud and clear and steps should be taken to retain as many open spaces as possible.

“There is enough congestion and there should be no development until the traffic problem is solved,” said Pua, who agreed that consultation with residents should have been carried out when converting the land for commercial use.

MBPJ councillor Cynthi Gabriel said that the turnout for the protest was encouraging but that residents still need to submit official objections to the council.

Councillor Mak Khuin Weng said that he was concerned about the discrepancies brought up by residents and would bring up the issue with the MBPJ town planning department.

Many residents in the surrounding area were also upset that only a handful received letters from the MBPJ regarding the development. One resident also claimed that the MBPJ was misleading the people as the objection board put up at the site of the development had no mention of the two blocks of 15- to 28-storey office buildings but it was mentioned in the letters which not many residents received.

Also present was Bukit Gasing assemblyman Edward Lee.

Quick Response Team for PJ

By Oh Ing Yeen at the MBPJ full board meeting
http://thestar.com.my/metro/story.asp?file=/2008/9/27/central/2131183&sec=central

THE Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) will implement the Quick Response Team (QRT) to handle minor grouses in the city beginning Jan 1, 2009, PJ mayor Roslan Sakiman announced at the MBPJ December full board meeting.

“There will be 10 officers from various departments, such as the Landscape, Engineering and Health departments, in the team, for multi-skills and multi-tasking,” he said.

The idea was proposed by MBPJ councillor Michael Soon at the September full board meeting.

PJ folk can look forward to more good news in 2009, such as free medical services for the hardcore poor, people with disabilities, and senior citizens in PJ.

“It costs RM2 million to provide these facilities and only those who have registered are eligible to enjoy free medical treatment at the clinic located in Section 8,” the mayor said.

He added that hygiene and cleanliness would also be a priority in 2009.

Soon: The owner of a closed eatery even said:
‘What’s wrong with being dirty as long as the food tastes good?'

Public Hygiene and Sanitation Committee head Michael Soon said a holistic approach should be taken to tackle cleanliness problems and that people should boycott dirty eateries.

“It’s sad to note that the situation has not changed much. The members of parliament and assemblymen should also co-operate and not take sides.

“The owner of a closed eatery even said: ‘What’s wrong with being dirty as long as the food tastes good?’ The press is hitting on MBPJ (over the issue of hygiene and cleanliness) as it’s more sensational, but why don’t the writers urge the readers to boycott the dirty eateries instead?” he said, adding that, “With garbage hanging on trees, it’s like we have Christmas trees all year long.”

On the issue of illegal billboards in PJ, the mayor announced that seven billboards would be taken down in two to three weeks’ time.

“These billboards were erected in such a way that they would endanger the public,” he said. The billboards that will be taken down include those that are located near the Seri Setia KTM station, Church of St. Francis Xavier and the Selangor State Development Corporation (PKNS) field.

Councillor Derek Fernandez added, “The council is now fine-tuning the guidelines for billboards and we are studying , and deciding on, appropriate sites for the placement of billboards.”

Many councillors brought up the issue of the council’s delivery system and the need to buck up.

“The public wants to see visible changes. There should be service standards for services (such as mending potholes, cutting of trees) to be carried out within a certain time-frame,” Fernandez said.

In his speech, Roslan said that a Strategic Organisation Plan (Pelan Strategik Organisasi) was one of the ways to improve the city council’s delivery system.

“The Plan is important in the MBPJ as a whole as it would be the goal for every department’s plan and implementation.

“As the local authority, the MBPJ is the government’s front-line agency that is most important and closest to the public in delivering its services. Therefore, the services that the public gets from the MBPJ reflects the delivery system’s quality and efficiency as a whole,” he said.

Some councillors also brought up the issue of communication between councillors and the MBPJ department heads.

“Being part-time councillors, we may overlook certain matters as we are too busy, and the council staff just wait for us to follow up,” councillor Latheefa Beebi Koya said, pointing out that it was important for pro-active measures and for the councillors and MBPJ to work hand in hand.

Soon proposed that a Management for Change workshop be organised for councillors and MBPJ staff to deal with change since the Selangor state government is now under Pakatan Rakyat.

Council Anthony Thanasayan suggested that the MBPJ create more job opportunities for the disabled.

More details of the MBPJ 2009 budget are available on the MBPJ website: www.mbpj.gov.my.

Proposal to let Myanmarese refugees work

http://www.thenutgraph.com/proposal-to-let-myanmar-refugees-work

By Elizabeth Looi

Refugees are hiding out in jungles

PETALING JAYA, 9 Dec 2008: Undocumented refugees from Myanmar who are hiding out in jungles in Selangor may be allowed to work legally in the state, if a proposal by Bukit Gasing state assemblyperson Edward Lee comes to fruition.

"I will propose to the state government to allow them to work legally and under conditions that will benefit both the state and the Burmese communities.

"I think they should also be allowed to occupy abandoned housing projects in the state. They can be given the task of resuscitating the projects by providing labour at reasonable wages, paid by developers appointed by the government to complete the work," he told The Nut Graph.

If the government takes the initiative and allows the refugees this opportunity, they wouldn't have to stay in the jungle in a deplorable state, Lee added.

This will be a win-win situation as the refugees will get a place to stay, earn a small decent income, and not be hounded by the authorities because of their illegal status. The developers, on the other hand, get to complete and sell their projects, Lee added. The government benefits, as by doing so it avoids bad publicity and a logistic nightmare.

Lee added that there were a lot of Myanmarese refugees who had to live in the jungle to avoid authorities such as Rela, the civil volunteer corps who are empowered to arrest illegal immigrants.

He said although there are also those who stay in the city, many refugees are forced to work illegally, leading to cases of them being exploited.

Lee's proposal has found favour with non-governmental organisation Suara Rakyat Malaysia (Suaram). Its refugee coordinator Temme Lee said it was a great move by the state government but the biggest obstacle still lies within the federal government.

"But it's important that this is done with proper procedure to avoid conflict with the federal government.

"The problem is they (the refugees) need proper documentation that is recognised by Rela and the government," she said when contacted.

She added that Suaram had been trying to push for the government to allow refugees to work and live in the country.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) also lauded the proposal but said it must however be a holistic approach for all refugees instead of just the minority who hide in the jungle.

External relations officer Yante Ismail said although she could not comment specifically on Lee's proposal, any move to allow refugees to earn an income would benefit the country.

"It is pragmatic to allow the group of people to remain in the country and provide help because they cannot possibly return home. While they are in the country, let them do something to help the country.

"Refugees are highly resourceful and they don't want to accept charity or welfare. It's a solution that is both practical and humane," she said.

Yante noted that such a move would reflect well on Malaysia, which has had a long tradition of hosting refugees since 1975.

"Therefore, a solution like this does not go against what Malaysia stands for," she said, adding that there were 42,800 refugees registered with the UNHCR as of September 2008, of which 37,800 were from Myanmar.

She however said that Malaysia was neither a signatory to the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees nor its 1967 Protocol."It has no legislative or administrative provisions in place to deal with the situation of asylum-seekers or refugees in the country," Yante said.

140 rats killed at popular market

http://thestar.com.my/metro/story.asp?file=/2008/11/18/central/2570743&sec=central
By YIP YOKE TENG

GUESS how many rats died of poison baits placed at the Section 17/21 wet market by the Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) last month? 140.

And this 30-year-old open air market is regarded by many to have the most fresh seafood in the city.

Following reports of the alarming filthiness at the market in StarMetro during its Hygiene Campaign on Oct 20, Nov 10 and Nov 17, the traders are finally setting out to make the market cleaner.


Eyesore: Lee (right) lashing out at the culprits, believed to be
hawkers and restaurant operators, who have contributed to creating
this disgusting heap of garbage near the Section 17/21 wet market.

It is hoped that the rodent colony will soon be wiped out at the popular market.

The traders teamed up with 10 MBPJ workers in a gotong-royong on Monday to clean up the puddle-ridden streets and dug perishables out of the dirt-caked drains. The council provided two water tankers.

The stall operators had unanimously agreed to each fork out RM30 a month to hire an additional worker to clean the market every day, from 6am to 2pm. Now, there is only one worker doing the job on a part-time basis. Each trader pays between RM12 and RM15 for the service.
They will also form a committee to monitor the market’s cleanliness.


Working together: Traders of the Section 17/21 wet market cleaning the area.

“We have had regular cleaning-up sessions like this every month since about two years ago, but the problem still exists,” vegetable seller Low Guai Hwa said. Low blamed the unhealthy situation on a few selfish and inconsiderate traders who simply discard refuse into the drains.

Bukit Gasing assemblyman Edward Lee said the MBPJ would first resurface the roads riddled with potholes, while its engineering department would conduct a feasibility study into building a concrete floor.

“If it is suitable and not too expensive, the council will go ahead with the plan,” he said.
Meanwhile, a developer had expressed interest in building an indoor market in the neighbourhood. Lee said the proposal was being discussed and assessed.

He said the council would re-install a CCTV in the market to prevent traders and consumers from littering.