KUCHING, March 30: Democratic Action Party (DAP) must respect the High Court’s decision on the Liquidated Ascertained Damages (LAD) for the late delivery of properties in Sarawak and assist the public in understanding the new interpretation, rather than using the issue to play politics and perpetuate their brand of hate politics.
Sarawak United Peoples’ Party (SUPP) Stakan chairman Dato Sim Kiang Chiok who asserted this in a statement today, urged DAP to stop confusing the public about the LAD issue and address the matter at hand.
“The Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) coalition did not make the decision in the High Court, nor did any SUPP or DAP politician sit on the High Court bench to hear the case.
“After all of the uncertainty caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, DAP’s unchanging attitude and publicity strategy appear to be the same as before,” he said in a statement today.
Sim went on to say that DAP apologised to Sarawak for the sake of apologising and that it has not learned anything from its past mistakes.
“We are pleased that the High Court determined that the Housing Development Ordinance (HDO) differs from the Housing Development Act in Malaya, demonstrating that our autonomous rights over our land matter remain intact and well protected,” he stated.
He added that the LAD issue had many purchasers and developers concerned about when the LAD for late delivery of properties under the HDO in Sarawak would begin.
Meanwhile, Sim, who is also the Sarawak Housing and Real Estate Developers’ Association (Sheda) Kuching chairman, hailed as “fair” the High Court decision that LAD begins from the date of the Sale and Purchase Agreement (SPA), not the booking date.
“This decision is fair to the developer because the potential buyer has only made an offer to buy the house by signing the booking form.
“Typically, any booking can be easily cancelled by the potential purchaser with no further obligation,” he said.
Furthermore, he asserted that if the Malayan ruling is incorporated into the Sarawak HDO, it will undoubtedly provide more protection to purchasers but it will be an unfair one, because bookings can be cancelled without much consequence to the purchaser, but it will cost the developer in terms of time spent and sales resources on getting bookings received.
Sim opined the cost of building residential houses in Sarawak will also rise because developers will be required to provide higher contingencies for LAD for longer periods of delay, which will push up the selling price of houses.
“Lawmakers have the authority to change any law if the majority agrees, but they must also ensure that any changes to the law do not raise compliance costs, which would result in higher house prices for Sarawakians.
“The current HDO is adequate to protect purchasers, and any changes to the HDO for LAD calculation from the booking form will almost certainly increase the cost of new residential houses being built in Sarawak,” he said.
He added that there are lawmakers and politicians from both parties who are developers, consultants, contractors, and lawyers who contribute to the various functions of the housing development industry, and they should continue to do so in the best interests of all parties in order for Sarawakians to own houses at affordable prices. — DayakDaily
