PAP ran town councils first to raise conservancy charges

[Without_a_car]

At least 2 town councils to up S&C charges

by Leong Wee Keat

05:55 AM Mar 09, 2010

http://www.todayonline.com/Hotnews/EDC1003...o-up-SC-charges

 

SINGAPORE - With electricity prices and maintenance costs going up, at least two town councils, Aljunied and Jurong, will raise their Service and Conservancy Charges (S&CC) next month.

 

The hike will impact flats, shops, offices and market and hawker stalls.

 

For Singaporean households in Housing Board flats, the hike per month will range between 50 cents for a one-room flat and $4.50 for a five-room flat.

 

While the other 12 People's Action Party (PAP) and two Opposition town councils have not indicated on their websites that they will raise S&CC, could the announcements by Aljunied and Jurong herald an inevitable trend as costs rise and economic conditions pick up?

 

The 14 PAP town councils had raised S&CC across the board in 2004 - seven years after the last revision.

 

Coming up to the six-year mark now, town councils like Jurong have seen power tariffs shoot up by 38.4 per cent since October 2004.

 

This impacts the town council "greatly", Jurong Town Council said, as utility bills account for 30 per cent of overall operating cost. "Electricity consumption is also forecast to increase with the installation of more lifts, linkways and amenities within the town," it added.

 

On the frequently-asked-questions section of its website, the town council dismissed any suggestion that the S&CC hike was linked to any investments in failed Lehman-linked structured products.

 

In the first place, it did not invest in any of the troubled financial products; and its "investments have been generating returns of 2.57 per cent per annum over the last five years", Jurong Town Council said.

 

Meanwhile, with the growing number of lifts, and lifts making more stops in a block, maintenance costs have also rocketed. In Aljunied, for example, the monthly servicing costs have doubled from $300 to $624 where a lift makes nine more stops. And where there were just 884 lifts to maintain in 2005, there will be 1,109 by this month's end, and a projected 1,270 by 2014.

 

Also expected to rise: The cost of keeping estates clean. "The demands on the cleaning and refuse removal contractors have changed, and so too their service costs," Aljunied Town Council general manager Jeffrey Chua said.

 

"Because they have to meet specific performance targets, they have to pay higher wages for better trained workers." The cleaning contract rate of about $5.98 per equivalent dwelling unit each month has gone up to about $6.25.

 

For households facing problems with S&CC payments, both town councils assured them financial help was available and urged them to approach their Members of Parliament.

 

Residents MediaCorp spoke to want more clarity. "Neighbours complain the estate is still dirty. With the increase, I hope for more transparency on the targets achieved," Aljunied resident Reynold Seah said.

 

Jurong resident JF Yeo said: "Any fee increase so soon after a recession cannot be good news. The town council should at least show us that our money will be put to good use."

 

Meanwhile, Jalan Besar Town Council chairperson Denise Phua and Bishan-Toa Payoh Town Council chairman Zainudin Nordin both said they had no plans for now to increase conservancy charges.

 

Ms Phua noted that estates varied in terms of age and programmes, which could account for differences in upkeep costs.

[Bioinformatics]

Yes. We are interested to find out how our SCC is being manage....

[Without_a_car]

This is how the PAP Aljunied team rewarded Singaporeans who supported them. Being the first to raise conservancy charges.

Edited May 4, 2011 by Without_a_car