HOW SNEAKY! Ku Nan slammed for assessment rate cuts but retaining SKY-HIGH property valuations

The Kuala Lumpur City Hall might have cut assessment rates by 1% to 4% but residents associations and lawmakers say the issue of valuation has not been addressed yet.

City property owners noted that despite the slight reduction, they would still end up paying more in assessment rates after valuation of some properties were hiked up to 300%.

Batu MP Tian Chua said that the amount to be paid is still "ridiculous".

"We did not object to the rates but the valuation of the properties which suddenly increased up to 300%. People will still be paying more," he said.

He took Federal Territories Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Mansor to task for a "wayang kulit" performance by giving the impression that Kuala Lumpur property owners would be paying a lot less when in actual fact, it has not changed much.

"City Hall still has to have a hearing for the thousands of people who sent in their objection letters before they implement the new assessment rates," he added.

"There was nothing drastic at all in the reduction he (Tengku Adnan) announced."

Seputeh MP Teresa Kok was also critical of yesterday’s announcement, as it did not address the drastic increase in property valuation.

"We should have a law to ensure that the increment of such things are done gradually. This is too much.

"The reduction the minister is talking about is nothing as the amount to be paid in assessment is still high," she said.

Bukit Damansara Residents Association chairman Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Abdul Rahman, who headed a coalition of 15 RAs in the city to object to the proposed increase in assessment rates, was also not convinced that the 1% to 4% reduction would help.

"The issue here is the valuation of our properties. They have to tell us how they did it. Is it based on rentals or what?"

City Hall, he said, had not done a revaluation exercise in 21 years so that made their figures somewhat doubtful.

"Under the law, they are supposed to do it every three years."

Abdul Aziz said he was also perplexed as to how the assessment rate of 6%, or 4% for residential properties following yesterday's announcement, came about.

It was reported that City Hall had received 80,000 objection letters on the revaluation of properties in the city. - TMI