Council: Don’t turn flats into mini zoos
16/07/2007 The Star By DERRICK VINESH

High-rise housing dwellers should not turn their units into a mini zoo, Seberang Prai Municipal president Farizan Darus said.

He reminded high-rise unit dwel-lers not to have cats and dogs as pets or rear chickens and swallows in their units.

It was illegal to have pets in flats, he said, adding that offenders could be charged under Section 82 of the Local Government Act 1976 for the offence and liable for a fine up to RM2,000 or six months' jail if convicted.

“It is unhealthy to have pets in high-rise units.

“When your pets dirty your neighbour’s property, it is an awful sight,” he said.

The council had received several complaints and would soon mount surprise checks on high-rise units, he said when meeting occupants of the council’s Ampangan low-cost flats in Ampang Jajar in Butterworth yesterday.

Farizan also said high-rise unit dwellers should not indiscriminately hang their laundry outside their units.

He said the Housing Foundation for the Poor and the council had jointly spent RM19.5mil to build the 10-storey Ampangan apartment building for those whose monthly household income was below RM1,500.

“Many of the 1,250 residents occupying the flat units are single parents and handicapped persons.

“The council is also sponsoring the RM100 monthly rental of 20 poor occupants whose monthly household income is below RM600,” he said.

He said the three-room flat units, which have been occupied since June last year, had a built-up area of 670 sq ft.

Farizan said the council had set up a Local Agenda 21 (LA21) committee at the flats to oversee daily operations there in place of a management corporation.

“The occupants need not pay any maintenance fee. We spend about RM23,000 in maintenance on the flats every month,” he said.

Farizan later presented cheques totalling RM8,800 to the 20 poor occupants in reimbursement of rental which they had paid from January to June this year.