IN the world of politics, making a stand on an issue can sometimes lead to friendly advice and curious SMSes. This is one such story, with no morals attached to the telling of the tale, save those that readers conclude for themselves. The advice I had just finished a local council meeting when a senior […]
Ampersand
A councillor’s life
Ampersand by KW MakMBPJ councillor KW Mak would like to someday return – via legal means – to an income bracket that allows him to pay taxes, as the benefit of having free parking in Petaling Jaya as a councillor is really overrated.
Why should we care what MBPJ does?
Ampersand by KW Mak
MOST ratepayers are unlikely to know this. But according to the Local Government Act, if a local council incurs a debt it cannot pay, ratepayers can be compelled to pay up instead. Section 45 of the Local Government Act states that should the local council default in payment of a loan for three months, the […]
Privatising rubbish collection: Who benefits?
By KW Mak
THE federal government wants to privatise rubbish removal services under the 10th Malaysia Plan (10MP) and have local councils focus purely on enforcement. Technically, the federal government cannot legally force a local government to enter into a privatisation contract. A contract’s signatories would have to be representatives from the government entering the contract itself. However, […]
How MBPJ flouts the law
Ampersand by KW Mak
THE problems of poor and uncoordinated town planning were identified and recognised way back in 2005 when the Federal Town and Country Planning Department produced the National Physical Plan (NPP). The NPP was produced after town planning, which was to be dealt with in state and local plans, ended up being unguided and not in […]
The mess of poor town planning
By KW MakMY previous columns on town planning focused on how the Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) did not provide for legally-required green spaces when approving development for the city. Admittedly though, the loss of recreational parks isn’t so big a deal for urbanites since development brings with it the increased potential for economic growth. In fact, […]
The public’s demands
By KW Mak(Pic by leocub / sxc.hu) AFTER the March 2008 general election, a smartly dressed couple approached a Pakatan Rakyat (PR) Member of Parliament (MP). They told the MP that their son had scored 10 As for his PMR exams, and they expected the MP to purchase a laptop for him. The MP’s reply was […]
Slopes made simple
By KW MakDEVELOPMENT projects on hill slopes always draw the ire of residents living in the surrounding area. With the numerous stories of landslides and the lack of access to a developer’s development plans, it is understandable that the public has little tolerance for such development projects. In far too many cases, hill slope development has resulted […]
Why ratepayers complain
By KW MakIN this instalment of Ampersand, I shall detail the extra duties of handling complaints as a councillor. I will explain why the public continues to approach councillors such as myself despite the fact that the Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) has a complaints department. The MBPJ also has a 24-hour hotline for complaints. Apart from […]
Tales from a Councillor: Anonymous complaints
By KW MakTHERE are times when people request and demand that I stand up for their rights. But they are reluctant to make the request official, preferring instead to remain anonymous. As always, there are no morals to these stories, save those that readers conclude for themselves. Neighbour’s renovations A lady called up and demanded that I […]
