As the chairman of the Residents' Association of Aster & Begonia 2020, I got in touch with Jabatan Pertahanan Awam Malaysia (JPAM) in Seremban so that they could destroy the bee hives before they posed a danger to the residents.
The department said it would send its personnel over in the evening to complete the task, which it did.
One of our residents lauded JPAM for being one of the most efficient departments in the government service.
This brings to comparison the response and services of Majlis Bandaraya Seremban (MBS).
The services provided by MBS are far from satisfactory. Our residents' association had lodged a complaint to MBS regarding a faulty streetlight in our neighbourhood since Aug 1. Despite follow-ups via email, it remains unresolved save for the standard reply that our complaint has been taken note of.
The stretch of road inside our neighbourhood is dark at night and residents have started questioning whether the residents' association has taken any action.
Lately, it has come to our attention that maintenance at Astonia and Begonia Parks and the surrounding areas is under the jurisdiction of MBS.
The housing project developer maintained our neighbourhood for a period of time until almost all the units were sold off before they informed our residents' association that they had handed over the responsibilities to MBS. We have to now deal with MBS regarding problems affecting our neighbourhood.
The residents' association was also informed that all the trees planted inside the parks and in front of the houses belong to MBS and that they should not be cut down by residents.
The trees were all planted by the developer to boost sales and the aesthetic value of our neighbourhood.
However, many of the trees are in need of pruning as the branches are overgrown with some hanging over the road and driveways of homes.
We hope that MBS will be proactive in dealing with complaints from residents or residents' associations as we dutifully pay our assessment rates when they are due.
Michael Ng
Chairman, Residents' Association of Aster & Begonia 2020
The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of the New Straits Times