Latest news with #RM641
The Star
25-06-2025
- Business
- The Star
Anxiety over assessment tax crackdown in Johor
Instead of coming down hard on ratepayers, local councils should offer incentives to boost payment TWO years ago, there was much hue and cry when five local councils in Johor decided to hike their property assessment taxes, with some going up by more than 100%. The councils claimed that the last time valuations were done was in 2013. And since then, property prices had increased significantly, especially in cities such as Johor Baru, Pasir Gudang and Iskandar Puteri. This prompted Mentri Besar Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi to mitigate the fallout and cushion the impact among property owners by offering a 30% rebate last year. This rebate was subsequently expanded to include another 10 local councils, bringing the total number to 15 statewide. Kulai Municipal Council (MPKu) was the only local council to revise its assessment rates before the Covid-19 pandemic in 2019 and, as such, taxpayers there were not given rebates. Lately, I have been getting queries from people about images on social media showing local council enforcement personnel pasting red notices outside homes and even using tape to seal off entrances. There was also a video of people in uniform using metal cutters to cut padlocks or locking up homes. I discovered that some of the videos were posted earlier in the year but only started trending now. I found that two videos by Pasir Gudang City Council and Iskandar Puteri City Council (MBIP) showed enforcement officers cutting locks, sealing homes and pasting red notices outside homes. At the same time, I also found two light-hearted videos done by Johor Baru City Council (MBJB) and MPKu to encourage people to pay their assessment tax on time. The latter was even offering a gift and bag to those who paid before the deadline. This begs the question: Why the contrasting methods to get people to pay up? When contacted, Johor housing and local government committee chairman Datuk Mohd Jafni Md Shukor acknowledged that a special operation was being conducted statewide by all 16 local councils to go after owners with high outstanding assessment tax bills. Enforcement officers from Pasir Gudang City Council putting up notices before sealing a premises in their jurisdiction. — Courtesy photo He said the enforcement operations had to be done as they were getting complaints from prompt taxpayers. Mohd Jafni urged all property owners to come forward and settle their dues. I own a double-storey terrace house in Taman Desa Tebrau and was paying RM353.60 annually in assessment tax before the amount jumped 45% to RM512.80 this year. At the same time, MBJB has revalued my home from RM272,000 to RM641,000, a whopping 135% jump since I purchased the property 15 years ago. I had previously worked in the Klang Valley before moving down south and sometimes I find the cost of living in Johor is much higher than in Kuala Lumpur, maybe due to the strong Singapore dollar. I am sure some property owners may have overlooked paying their assessment taxes because of their hectic work schedules. As such, local councils should try other ways to coax people to pay their taxes, instead of resorting to such high-handed tactics. In addition to physical bills sent through the post, local councils should also follow up with SMS, WhatsApp and email to get ratepayers to settle their dues on time. Why not give an incentive in the form of a 10% rebate to those who pay early or sign up for auto debit? For those having trouble paying, local councils should offer flexible instalment plans. A little more empathy and creativity can go a long way.
Daily Express
29-05-2025
- Daily Express
Indonesian nabbed in Lahad Datu for having syabu
Published on: Thursday, May 29, 2025 Published on: Thu, May 29, 2025 By: Azmie Lim Text Size: Police arresting the suspect in front of a hotel. LAHAD DATU: Police here arrested a 32-year-old Indonesian for having syabu worth RM641. District Acting Police Chief, Supt Jimmy Panyau, said the labourer was detained in front of a hotel in Jalan Panji, here, on Tuesday. Police detained the suspect upon receiving an tip. 'The team seized a translucent plastic containing a substance believed to be syabu weighing 5.83 grammes. 'The suspect also tested positive for Methamphetamine,' he said, adding that investigation is ongoing under Section 39A(1) and Section 15(1)(a) of the Dangerous Drug Act 1952. Police urged the public to provide information to assist the police in combating drug-related criminal activities in the district. Advertisement Information can be channelled by contacting Lahad Datu Police Headquarters at 089-881255 or the Official Facebook site of Lahad Datu Police. * Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel and Telegram for breaking news alerts and key updates! * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express's Telegram channel. Daily Express Malaysia
