The Developers' Bluff

When I first got married to my husband, he had just started one of his numerous business ventures. We put everything we had into making the ventures work and barely had enough to make ends meet. This was our marital home in the early years in Kampung Pasir. (click on pics for larger view)



When we had our firstborn six years later, We started to see a change in fortunes. Not luxurious, but enough. And we managed to buy the house we never dreamed of in 2004. A 3 storey, 3,000 sq ft house on the other side of Bukit Setiawangsa, Bukit Wangsamas. Our first and only home.

We were lured by the brochures and the crafty salesman, both promising a well-managed gated community with a two-tiered guard system.

Playground and Wangsamas houses

Sunrise in Wangsamas

Sunset in Wangsamas

My road...wide...best betul!

Now, four years later, the management (a company under the wing of the developer), wants to handover the place to the residents' committee which was initiated by me after a robbery (yeah, the guards were sleeping...so much for gated security, thanks to the quality of guards provided in their attempt to turn a profit).

That is well and fine. The twist is...they want to remove the guardhouse. And the card barrier system, and open up the roads. Why? Because they never received DBKL approval for the gated concept. They cheated us. And they wanna pack up and leave after profiteering.

So now we know. Albeit too late. But so far my threats to write to the papers and the MPs and various other authorities have saved us the guardhouse. But for how long? I suspect that they will be using our roads for their other developments within the area, unhindered.

DBKL road meh, shrieked Gary, the project manager.

But you sold us the place as a secure and guarded enclave, I said.

Haiya, that was last time...now differentlah, he shrieked again.

And I threw my S&P agreement right into his ugly, smirking face with MUCH satisfaction.

No blood drawn. Should have thrown him out the window.

You bloody cheat, I said to his S&P covered face.

Wha..wha..what! She call me shit! he blubbered.

Sorry Gary, I guess you know better what you are then.

How did they get away with this? False advertising, ... and we fell hook, line and sinker. We did not read the fine print. The lax laws, the tidak apa and (corrupt?) authorities and also the pro- developer and "screw the buyer" agreements and fine print. As usual, the rakyat are at the mercy of big business and the taukehs and politicians.

Was it totally our fault to fall for the MISLEADING physical and verbal impression of gated security?

We still have a long ways to go.

But let me tell you TAN SRI LOW KENG HUAT.

DESPITE YOUR MILLIONS (OR BILLIONS) YOU STILL HAVE A LOT TO LEARN ABOUT ETHICS AND BASIC HUMAN DECENCY.

YOU AIN'T SEEN NOTHIN' YET.