TTF: Teresa Kok should seek a declaration from the people of Penang that the exorbitant hikes in the state’s water rates is a burden to them. The Seputeh Member of Parliament (MP) should first try to assist people being burdened by her own party boss instead of sticking her oars in the affairs of Barisan National (BN) politicians.
Ever since the DAP led Pakatan Rakyat took control of Penang in 2008, it has increased water rates four times and is considering raising conservation surcharges from the current RM0.48 to RM1! The previous BN administration only increased the water tariff once in the 37 or so years it led the state.
In September 2013, the Lim Guan Eng administration raised the surcharge by 100 percent from 24 cents to 48 cents per 1,000 litres for usage of more than 35,000 litres per month. The new surcharge came into effect on the 1st of April 2015 despite the Chief Minister’s promise not to raise tariffs as part of his new year resolution to the people.
But Guan Eng had an excuse.
According to him, he was ‘forced’ to break his promise “to ensure that we do not need to impose water rationing if there are any long droughts in future.” The Chief Minister added that the move was to prevent wastage by forcing consumers to use water sparingly. But it is what the Chief Minister did not tell the people that concerned several quarters most.
The hike in rates – 16.7% on average for residential consumers and 18.8% for commercial consumers – afforded PBA Holdings the luxury of increasing its profit by a staggering 182% from RM19.1 million to RM53.7 million! And the rates were not as affordable as the Chief Minister claimed, with some sectors registering increases in charges by as much as 400%, all in just one go!
And yet, the Seputeh MP is more concerned with the Kuala Lumpur Mayor’s decision to appoint Yayasan Wilayah Persekutuan to handle parking charges. Why tell BN politicians how to do their jobs when your own party chief is milking money out of the blood, sweat and tears of Penangites?
Where is your conscience, Teresa?
KUALA LUMPUR: Seputeh Member of Parliament Teresa Kok Suh Sim and a consumer association failed in their bid to quash the decision of the Kuala Lumpur Mayor in appointing Yayasan Wilayah Persekutuan to handle public parking and collect the parking charges.
High Court judge Datin Azizah Nawawi dismissed the judicial review application by Kok and Selangor and Federal Territories Consumer Association president Mohd Yusof Abdul Rahman on grounds that Kuala Lumpur Mayor Datuk Mhd (rpt: Mhd) Amin Nordin, who was named the respondent, had the power to do so.
This, he said, was provided in the General Order on Management of Procurement and Contract , Kuala Lumpur Mayor 2015.
“The appointment of Yayasan Wilayah Persekutuan has complied with Order 13 of the 2015 Order, that there was a tender exercise that the Yayasan is a non-profit welfare organisation catering for the needs and welfare of Wilayah Persekutuan.
“…that the Yayasan is a Bumiputera company, that no expenses was incurred by the respondent and the respondent is set to generate a revenue of RM600,000 from the revised parking collection. It cannot be said that the appointment of Yayasan is bad in law,” she said.
She said the court found there was no merit in the application and dismissed it with RM5,000 in costs.
Last May 22, Kok and Mohd Yusof were granted leave by the to initiate a judicial review proceeding.
In the application, which was filed on Oct 7, Kok and Mohd Yusof named Federal Territories Minister Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor, Mhd Amin Nordin and DBKL as respondents, but following the May 22 decision, the court only maintained the mayor as respondent.
In the application, Kok and Mohd Yusof had sought a declaration that the hike in parking charges was exorbitant and burdened the people.
Lawyers S. N. Nair and K. Murali represented Kok and Mohd Yusof, while lawyer Datuk S. Satharuban represented the Kuala Lumpur Mayor.
Source: The Malay Mail Online
