Bumbling politicians and crumbling public trust
What can we make of the differing statements of the Federal Territories Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Mansor (pic) and his deputy Datuk J. Loga Balan Mohan over the rate hike for Kuala Lumpur property owners?
One insists the rate hike will take effect on January 1, 2014 while the other says it has been deferred till after March 2014 due to appeals and hearings. And where is the city mayor in all of this?
Is the Malaysian capital city being run by politicians elected elsewhere or a civil servant who is appointed to the post and only accountable to the government - not the people who pay tax in Kuala Lumpur?
All this actually means is a greater trust deficit in the authorities, from how they assess taxes to how they they use public funds to run the capital city.
This comes at a time when Putrajaya has been promoting Kuala Lumpur as a regional headquarters for multinationals under the InvestKL programme.
Who would consider KL if the authorities can't make up their minds on when taxes take effect or what is the quantum of taxes and the only reason for such rate hikes is because it has not been increased in 21 years.
Today, Tengku Adnan said this, "We can defer payment, but the rate will automatically increase from January 1. What we will postpone is the implementation because with the objection period ending on December 17, it will take about three months for DBKL to hear all of them.
"We will start the hearing in December. The new rates will apply in January, we have to follow the act (Housing and Local Government Act).
"For 21 years, we did not raise anything."
Yesterday, his deputy Loga Balan had told parliament, "The proposed increase will be deferred to allow for appeals to be heard from January to March next year.
"We have not decided when to implement it," he said in winding up points raised by MPs.
How can two men in the executive differ on something as simple as this? And why are they talking instead of the mayor? KL might as well save money by dropping the mayor and leaving it to Putrajaya to run the city.
Who can property owners rely on for certainty and facts? Bumbling politicians or fumbling civil servants? Is there any wonder why the people are fed up with such politicians and voted for their opponents in the past two general elections?
Can we get some clarity from City Hall, rather than those who can't get their story straight? If Putrajaya wants Kuala Lumpur to be a world-class city, it must have a better class of people in authority, not third-rate politicians. - November 28, 2013
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