'Red light' local councils face budget cuts, says minister
SERDANG: Local authorities that receive a 'red light' performance rating under the traffic light evaluation system will face action, including having their allocations withdrawn, says Housing and Local Government Minister Nga Kor Ming.
This follows the implementation of the traffic light assessment system to evaluate the performance of 156 local authorities nationwide since May.
Nga also reminded mayors, municipal council presidents and secretaries that action would be taken against those who fail to deliver a satisfactory level of performance under the new evaluation system.
"To all the mayors present here today, listen carefully.
"If (you) fail, your name will be submitted to the Public Services director-general.
"For any local authority rated 'red light', their allocation will be withdrawn; for 'yellow', the allocation will be reduced; but if rated 'green', the allocation will be increased.
"If a local authority receives a red light, the president and secretary will be called in for counselling and required to attend a performance enhancement course," he said after launching the Subang Jaya Car-Free Day programme and the prize-giving ceremony for the design ideas competition here today.
Speaking about the competition, Nga said a total of 91 entries were received from various local architectural firms and professionals.
Ten of the top designs were shortlisted by a panel of seven expert judges and community stakeholders, including local residents and traders.
Nga said each shortlisted participant received cash prizes and certificates, with awards ranging from RM5,000 to RM50,000 for the best designs.
"The winner will not only receive a cash prize but will also be appointed as the consultant for the market construction project, valued at RM12 million.
"The competition was assessed based on a system comprising 90 per cent input from an impartial panel of professional judges and 10 per cent from public jurors, which included community representatives, assemblymen and councillors," he said.
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