KUALA LUMPUR – The increase in assessment tax imposed by the Selayang Municipal Council (MPS) is not yet finalised.
The tax, which is set to be introduced by the council in January next year, is planned to increase to RM660 a year compared to RM156.50 in the previous years since 1992.
MPS issued a new valuation list notice to 230,000 landholding owners under its administration on April 1, 2024, in accordance with Section 141 of the Local Government Act 1976 (Act 171).
The council’s administrative area covers 545.6sqkm, including three sub-districts – Rawang, Batu, and Setapak.
Speaking to Scoop, Selayang MP William Leong said he has been receiving complaints from his constituents about the tax increase.
He further mentioned that he had conveyed residents’ concerns to the council, which has led to the postponement of the tax imposition.
The residents are expected to provide feedback to the council by May 31.
“The last time MPS revised the rates was in 1992, and it has been more than 30 years since they raised them.
“After receiving several complaints from my constituents, I wrote a letter to MPS expressing that this is not the right time for a revision as we have just recovered from the Covid-19 pandemic and are yet to recover from the economic crisis.
“However, the notice provided by MPS was actually to seek opinions from the residents.
“They can write in or use the QR code in the notice to object. MPS is taking the feedback, and residents have until May 31 to object.
“As the MP for my constituency, I have been helping the residents by educating them through a tutorial video on my Facebook platform in three languages (English, Bahasa Malaysia, and Mandarin) on how to submit their objections.
“I have also held several events at night markets and various areas in my constituency to assist people in filling out the forms to object to the new assessment tax,” said William when contacted.
Property owners can object by scanning the QR code attached to the new assessment list review notice.
The objection form can also be downloaded from the MPS official website at https://www.mps.gov.my and sent to the Valuation and Property Management Department via email at [email protected].
Meanwhile, a resident from Taman Selayang Baru, who prefers to remain anonymous, told Scoop that senior citizens are frustrated with the sudden increase in the assessment tax without prior consultation with the residents.
“It’s not fair to us. We have been living here for many years. They should understand the sentiment on the ground and consult us before issuing notices on the assessment tax.
“Many people living here are senior citizens, and we can’t afford to pay such a large amount of tax yearly.
“Some of us are struggling to make a living, so how are we going to pay?
“This is disrespectful to us residents, and we are really frustrated with MPS for coming up with this plan.
“We will be sending a protest notice to them in the coming days,” said the resident.
It was reported that a total of RM 90.98 million in current assessment tax was collected by MPS as of September last year. – May 24, 2024