Amend Sarawak law to protect house buyers from exploitation, says MP

Sarawak DAP chairman Chong Chieng Jen said a recent Kuching High Court decision made house buyers in the state vulnerable to exploitation by developers.

PETALING JAYA: A Sarawak MP has called for amendments to the law on sale and purchase agreements (SPA) for properties so that Sarawak house buyers are afforded better protection.

Sarawak DAP chairman Chong Chieng Jen said the law in its present form provided house buyers in Sarawak with far less protection from exploitative developers compared to buyers in Peninsular Malaysia.

Chong made the call in a statement today following a ruling by the Kuching High Court which he said made house buyers in the state vulnerable to exploitation by developers.

Two days ago, the Kuching High Court held that for standard SPAs under the Sarawak Housing Development Ordinance, the date of delivery of houses purchased from developers would be calculated from the date the SPA was signed. It won’t be from the date the booking fees were paid.

Chong Chieng Jen.

This ruling, he said, contrasted with the Federal Court decision in January last year that in West Malaysia, the delivery date would be calculated from when the booking fee was collected, not the date of the SPA.

“To illustrate the effect of the Federal Court decision, take the case of a developer who collects a booking fee from a purchaser on Jan 1, 2000, for an agreement signed on April 1, 2000.

“The 24 months for delivery, as provided under the Sarawak Housing Development Ordinance, is calculated from April 1 and not Jan 1. This means the penalty or liquidated damages for late delivery (payable to the buyer) will be calculated from April 1.

“The Federal Court decision was made in the spirit of protecting purchasers against (exploitative) developers,” he said.

Chong said since Sarawak laws regulating SPAs for housing projects in the state were less favourable to house buyers compared to that in the peninsula, the state government should take immediate steps to amend the relevant part of the ordinance.

The Stampin MP also took to task Michael Tiang, the state’s second deputy public health, housing and local government minister, for welcoming the High Court ruling.

Chong said Tiang’s action exposed “Gabungan Parti Sarawak as a political coalition that favoured developers at the expense of ordinary Sarawakians”.- FMT