Feather in Ipoh council’s cap
IPOH: The Ipoh City Council has been adjudged the top local authority in the country by the Ministry of Urban Wellbeing, Housing and Local Government for 2016.
It was among 41 local authorities nationwide which received a five-star rating, and also chalked the highest mark of 97.45 points.
The five-star rating earned the council RM200,000.
Ipoh City mayor Datuk Zamri Man said the response from residents to the questions posed by the panel of judges was the main contributing factor for the recognition. In 2008, the council attained only a three-star rating.
“There are 354 criteria to be fulfilled to qualify for the award, which include problems faced by the people, cleanliness, revenue collection and management, landscaping and public utilities,” he told reporters after receiving the award from minister Tan Sri Noh Omar.
“Eighty per cent of the residents responded positively to the questionnaires on the functions and responsibilities of the council.
“The public play an important role, like not dumping rubbish indiscriminately, not vandalising public property, and planting more trees for a greener environment.”
Noh said the award was a reflection of how well councils managed cities and towns.
“We are now planning to give a similar recognition to housing estates from next year,” he added.
Perak Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Zambry Abd Kadir, who was present, said the award was a great achievement for Ipoh despite criticisms from certain quarters.
“They even criticised me for going down to the ground with workers to clean and collect garbage,” he said.
Seven other municipalities and district councils in Perak were among the 41 local authorities given five-star ratings.
They were Manjung Municipality (94.75), Batu Gajah district council (92.60), Taiping Municipality (92.36), Kampar district council (92.01), Kerian district council (91.43), Teluk Intan Municipality (90.63) and Kuala Kangsar (90.62). –