GEORGE TOWN, March 11 — DAP adviser Lim Guan Eng today questioned a 502 per cent increase in quit rent imposed on the Rumah Pangsa Kos Rendah Pusat Perniagaan Raja Uda, or Bola-Bola Flats, saying the hike was unjustified as the housing remains classified as low-cost.
In a post on his Facebook page today, Lim said Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow was wrong to attribute the increase to the failure to convert the development’s master title into individual strata titles for its 258 units.
According to Lim, the master title already permitted the construction of low-cost flats, and issuing strata titles later would not alter the land use classification.
“The master title permits the construction of a low-cost flat, and even when the strata title is issued later, the strata title is still for the use of a low-cost flat,” he said.
Lim noted that the Certificate of Completion and Compliance (CCC) for the Bola-Bola Flats was issued on January 3, 2011, marking the completion of the project about 15 years ago.
He said subdividing the master title into strata titles would not change the land’s use, adding that the state government had previously promised that quit rent for low-cost flats would not increase, regardless of whether the development was under a master title or strata title.
Lim said the flats have remained low-cost housing since residents moved in and have not been upgraded to higher-end developments such as condominiums.
“There is no reason or basis for the Penang Land and Mines Office to increase the quit rent from RM3,676 to RM22,120, especially when it has remained a low-cost flat for the past 15 years,” he said.
Lim also said the master title for the development is freehold and first grade, with no specific land use stated, which allows for various uses including commercial, residential, industrial, agricultural or public purposes.
He said approvals for the construction of the low-cost flats had been granted by the Penang Land and Mines Office and the Majlis Bandaraya Seberang Perai.
“If the first grade master title permitted the construction of the Bola-Bola low-cost flats with a quit rent of RM3,676, why is the quit rent increased by 502 per cent to RM22,120 fifteen years later when it remains a low-cost flat?” he asked.
Lim also referred to Chow’s explanation that quit rent increases are calculated based on four criteria — urban or rural classification, land size, current land use and the applicable quit rent rate.
He argued that based on these criteria, the quit rent for the flats should not have increased as none of the factors had changed.
Lim said the 502 per cent increase suggested that the current system used to calculate quit rent was “defective or faulty”.
He also pointed to complaints from other landowners who reportedly faced quit rent increases of more than 3,000 times, saying the system should be replaced.
Lim called for a new and fair formula to determine quit rent increases, adding that any new mechanism should include public consultation and feedback before being implemented.
