Funds for the building allocated over the years

The allocation to rebuild the Petaling Jaya mayor’s official residence was first included in the 2008 Budget, with RM871,900 budgeted but was not used.

A total of RM900,000 was thus side aside for the purpose in the following year’s budget and that raised some eyebrows. An additional RM600,000 was allocated in Budget 2010 due to an increase in the cost of building materials.

Some questioned if the expense was necessary but the full board approved it eventually as the official residence had been torn down due to being termiteinfested. The site was left idle for years and became an eyesore.

All Petaling Jaya Residents Association (Apac) chairman Johan Tung Abdullah said the money spent on the mayor’s official residence was “very generous” but declined to elaborate.

“Now that you have a huge mansion there, it is important for the Petaling Jaya City Council to maintain the asset properly and ensure there is no recurrence of termite infestation. We do not want to see another RM1.5mil allocated for the same purpose again a few years down the road,” he said.

Former Apac chairman Liew Wei Beng, who was in office when the issue was first raised, said the allocation was fair but that the council could have been more transparent in how they handled the money.

“It is fair that the mayor be provided with a proper residence to show his status and the amount is not exorbitant.

“Still, the council was not transparent throughout the process. The allocations budgeted for different years were rather confusing. Also, questions arise over whether there was an open tender? Was it done properly? We did not know,” he said.

MBPJ councillor Richard Yeoh, who is the former executive director of Transparency International, said he did not see a problem in the construction of the new residence.

“The mayor’s residence had been there for about five decades but it fell into a state of disrepair due to termites. Currently, spending RM1.5mil for a house for the mayor is reasonable as there should be an official residence for the mayor to host visitors or to have official functions.

He added that the mayor’s residence was a public asset and proposed that the community and councillors be allowed to use it for public events.

By The Star