"Together - Let us keep our neighborhood safe"

Thursday, August 30, 2012

Merdeka Celebrations

Kepada semua warga negara Malaysia, "Selamat menyambut Hari Merdeka"

Friday, August 17, 2012

Hari Raya Greetings!

To all our Muslim Friends - "Selamat Menyambut Hari Raya"! From all at USJ 11/3

Thursday, August 9, 2012

August 2012 Newsletter

Dear Residents,


Here is a very special wish to all our Muslim neighbors – “Selamat Berpuasa” from all of us at USJ 11/3.

Our focus in this newsletter edition is about the escalation in crime in and around us and what we need to do to mitigate this menace collectively. It has become so serious, it is very necessary for us to pool all our resources together to bring this menace under control.

Two very daring robbery cases were reported in our area alone. Numerous cases were also reported in the Tai Pan Commercial area as well as nearby residential areas involving robbery on motorcycles, snatch thefts and also stolen vehicles and bicycles. Indeed, whatever “perceived improvements” reported by the authorities certainly do not hold true to the reality on the ground. Hence, we have to be extremely vigilant in times like these.


How effective is our Security system?

We have been asked many times – how effective really is our security system?
To answer that question, let us examine some simple facts that have significant impact on how effective we can really be. Our collection although has improved, is not significant enough for us to increase the number of guards to carry out more patrolling duties. We do not have the budget to purchase better quality CCTV systems, maintain it properly and purchase new electronic equipment for scanning ID cards at exit/entry points and many other such types of implements.

With such limited funds, it is still quite remarkable we are still able to at least attain the same level of services, albeit at a higher cost now. We need improvements no doubt but we need you (especially to those who do not pay) to play your part. Only collectively can we then make this an even safer place to live in.

That does not mean what we have done thus far have not contributed to our safety in the last few years. For your information, house break-ins reported have dropped significantly, with zero theft incidents of motor vehicles and snatch thefts. If not for this improvements, we believe, there will be not so many renovations taking place in our area and that a lot of people will want to move out, a phenomena and a norm before we implemented our G&G about four years ago.

So, next time you want to ask us that question, our answer is simple – how effective do you want it to be?


Robbery at 11/3C:

The first case reported was somewhere in the beginning of July 2012 at around 7 am, that involved a non-paying resident. Apparently, a few men in a car came into our area and saw this house with some children in front of the house waiting for the school bus. The men went into the house and tried to extort money from the children who shouted to their parents for help, who were at that time upstairs in their rooms. They came running down only to be confronted by the robbers demanding for more money. At that very moment, the school bus arrived, caused the robbers to panic and they took off, unsuccessful in their robbery attempt, without causing any harm to the people in that house.

The second case happened around the 3rd week of July 2012 which involved a paying resident. It was also around 7 am as they were preparing to send their children to school. After their children left, a few masked men, wearing dark jackets and armed with parangs entered the house and demanded for money. They robbed the couple who were at home of their valuables, computers and also camera leaving the frighten couple behind.

All these cases were reported to the police. For the first case, we could not do much as this resident chose not to join as a member. However, for the second case, we are assisting the family to make the insurance claim on the policy for our members that we have taken out for cases likes these.


Dialogue with the Police:

With the escalation in crime in our area, we foresee the need for the residents to engage with the police hence we are trying to organize a dialogue with them. This is important for us as it will give us first hand information on the actual situation and also discuss with them, the measures we can take to help mitigate this menace and not let it spiral out of control.

We have already gotten in touch with the police and are awaiting their response. Once that happens, we will notify you on the time, date and venue. We hope you will make the effort to come and learn on what you can do to prevent such incidences from happening, over and above what we are already doing with the security system.

In the meantime, please be extra vigilant when you leave the house in the morning for work/school and also when returning from work/school. Look around you before you exit the house and if you spot something suspicious, call the police immediately. Do not leave your premise until the coast is clear. And if you are a witness to such crimes, take note of the colour of the car, make and registration number. Call and notify the police immediately. You can call the Taipan police at +603 5633 7222. Please have this number handy in your mobile phone.

And if you are caught while driving out of your house in such a robbery attempts, honk as loud and hard as you can to attract attention. Under those circumstances, no one will fault you for waking them up!

With the Raya holidays not too far away, we need to keep a look out for each other to ensure that such crimes will not happen in our neighborhood. Do not leave it to the police or our guards to do the job. We need to do our part as well!


Futsal Court:

On another more pleasant note, we have been told by Top-speed (the company funding the construction of the new Futsal court), significant progress has been made with on the construction of the full-size Futsal court. The concreting of the floor is already completed with the special green based material. The rest of the finishing work including the fencing/caging and lighting works is expected to be carried out in the month of August 2012.

Once completed, it will be officially handed back to MPSJ and the residents of USJ 11/3. From the operational standpoint, we have plans to close the court after midnight to prevent vandalism and reopen it every morning.


Fire Hydrant:

There will be a program to “adopt” the fire hydrant by our residents, where maintenance work will be carried out on the fire hydrant closest to you. You can play your part by adopting that fire hydrant and carry out some simple maintenance work like painting it and also testing to make sure it works.

We will be doing this in collaboration with the Fire Department. More announcements on this once we have confirmed the dates, time etc. Please watch out for this program which is coming soon.


Collection:

We hope to see an increase in collection. As a resident here, perhaps you could do your part by paying (if you have not already done so) or speak to your immediate neighbor who has not done so to share the burden and pay for their subscriptions as well. Please do get in touch with the Street Leaders should you need more information.


Thank you.

The Committee
11 Trees @ USJ

July 2012 Newsletter

Dear Residents,


It has been a memorable month for us in USJ 11/3 for the months of May/June. It started with the Family Day on May 19, 2012, celebrating 4 years since the formation of our Resident Association. It was then followed by the approval for the relocation of the Futsal Court by MPSJ which to be fully sponsored by the owner of the new bungalow. There was also a walk-about for the new committee members which quite literally turned into an ‘eye-opener’ on the types of neighbors we had – more on that later.


Security Fees:

The company that provides us the security services has not raised their rates since they started offering their services to us more than three years ago. Recently, they have requested that their fees be raised by some 10% to cover rising costs. The Committee felt that it was a reasonable request and have since approved the hike in their fees. Despite that, their rates are considered to be reasonable and are much lower on the average as compared to most of other security company’s fees offering similar services around our area.

This has obvious impact on the ability for us to carry on with the security services. It has increased our cost of operations. So, how are we going to manage this increase in cost?

We, the Committee has made a conscious effort NOT to raise the monthly fee of RM50.00. We will do our level best to cover the cost by working harder to convince the many residents who have yet to pay to do so. However, we will only be successful if all of us were to chip in and do our bit for our own benefit. So, we are turning to you for help. Please do pay if you have not done so and if you did, you can help by speaking to your neighbors to get those who have not paid to start contributing.


Family Day Celebrations May 19, 2012:

A lot of residents came out to celebrate a day of togetherness at our kampong at our recent Family Day celebration on the USJ 11/3 padang. Several VIPS including our ADUN, YB Hanna Yeoh and MP for Kelana Jaya, YB Loh Gwo Burne joined in the day of fun.

The firefighting squad from the local BOMBA fire station in Subang Jaya, brought in their fire engine for demonstration. Throughout the night, entertainment was provided ex-Radio 4 DJ, Joey. A clown was seen entertaining the children and when the food were served, many joined in the lines to have their share of the local fare which included Mee Goreng, Kueh Teow goreng, Satay, Nasi Lemak, Roti Canai and much more.

The successful event was generously sponsored by our ADUN’s office, MP for Kelana Jaya, RHB Bank and many others. The Committee wish to record their appreciation for their generosity.


Futsal Court:

With the approval from MPSJ, work on the Fustal court has commenced on June 18. It is expected to take about 8 weeks for the completion of the construction of the new court. It is a full size Futsal court as compared to the existing one, fully fenced and fully lighted.

It is being funded by the owners of the bungalow to avoid misunderstanding between the futsal players and the owner as the present court is just next to the bungalows. Once completed, it will be officially handed back to MPSJ for their maintenance and for the benefit of the residents especially the teenagers who use the court regularly.

As for the existing court, it will be demolished and that area fully landscaped with trees and plants.


Collection:

There was a walk-about focusing on Streets 3A, 3B and 3C by the Committee menbers, where collection was recorded as the lowest in our area. After our recent walkabout sessions over the past weekend, we are happy to inform you that the collection has improved. However, we feel there is still room for improvement.

It is worth to let you know that there are still some residents while obviously benefiting from the security services are still very much reluctant to pay for reasons only known to them. To this we say, please do thank your generous neighbors for paying on your behalf and giving you that peace of mind. That is the least you can do!

During the walkabout, it was a revelation to many of our new Committee members. They were surprised with some of these resident's reaction towards them. Some of the residents who did not pay, claimed that there is no difference as crime is still rampant in our area. Really?

We do admit that crime still persists in our area and there were a few cases of house break-ins reported throughout the last few years since we implemented the security services. This is a far cry from the almost weekly reports of break-ins before we had this service. And there are ZERO cases of snatch thief cases since we started and virtually no more car thefts.

That speaks volumes of the success in our security services which has made our area a much safer place to live in. It undoubtedly, contributed to the decline in the crime rate although we never did get the official acknowledgement. We sincerely hope that those residents who did not contribute or who has just stopped as “my neighbor also do not pay so why should I?”, please be considerate to your paying neighbors and do your part. It is after all, also for your safety and the safety of your family too.

Having said that, there were also very good neighbors who did not hesitate to pay when we met with them, some complaining that no one came to see them or they simply did not know who to pay to. Well, to you – we say thank you as it made our voluntary job appreciated. And the good news is, there are quite a number of you.


Publication of payment list:

We would to, for the first time, publish the list of names that has paid and all the related details. This is done for a few reasons:

1. To promote transparency
2. To provide a channel for verification
3. To keep you informed

Since this is the first time we are doing this, we would like to seek your help in letting us know if you spot an error. Please do let us know if you do detect errors as we can rectify it as soon as possible. With the updated list we will also work on the new stickers that we will use on the plaque outside your gatepost at a later stage.

The publication of the names will be done on a 3 month basis. And if you have any suggestion, kindly drop us an e-mail or simply give any of us a call.

Thank you.

The Committee
11 Trees @ USJ