3 town councils marked down for management of overdue fees

Three town councils were marked down for their performance in arrears management in service and conservancy charges (S&CC) in the latest operational report released by the Ministry of National Development (MND) yesterday.

Chua Chu Kang Town Council, Jurong-Clementi Town Council and Sengkang Town Council were given amber ratings, while the remaining 14 received green ratings - the highest banding.

This is because the three town councils either had 40 per cent to less than 60 per cent of the town's monthly S&CC overdue, or had between four and less than six in 100 households that were in arrears for three months or more.

The three were the only town councils with amber ratings in the latest Town Council Management Report - Operational Report, which covers the 2021 financial year from April last year to March this year.

The 14 town councils which received green ratings had less than 40 per cent of the town's monthly S&CC overdue and less than four in 100 households in arrears for three months or more.

Town councils are assessed on four areas, including arrears management in S&CC.

All town councils received green ratings in the other three areas: estate cleanliness, estate management and lift performance.

The green, amber or red ratings given are based on measurable, objective criteria submitted by town councils and their auditors.

A Chua Chu Kang Town Council spokesman said the amount of overdue S&CC of three months or more was due to disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

It had also received an amber rating in arrears management in S&CC in the 2019 financial year.

The Chua Chu Kang spokesman said more than 1,200 Build-To-Order flats came on stream from 2020 to the first quarter of this year, but there was a delay in residents moving in due to disruptions to renovation works.

With many residents typically starting to pay their S&CC only upon moving in after three to nine months of renovation works, the town council ended up with arrears, added the spokesman.

The spokesman noted that the town council also offers financially strapped residents an option to pay S&CC arrears by instalment, and links them to social service offices and welfare organisations.

A Sengkang Town Council spokesman said it is working closely with residents to manage collections of the monthly S&CC and is focused on designing repayment schemes that are practicable for its residents.

It sends out regular reminders that residents' S&CC support a wide array of services including estate cleaning, landscaping works, refuse collection and building maintenance, said the spokesman.

"However, it is important to recognise that the amber banding also points to the deeper, underlying challenges that residents are facing in managing the rising costs of living," he added.

Jurong-Clementi Town Council's chairman Xie Yao Quan said that it received an amber rating as 48 per cent of the monthly S&CC was overdue for three months or more.

"We empathise with residents who are in genuine financial difficulty, and we continue to work with social service offices to help eligible households clear their S&CC arrears," he said.

This is the first year that the Town Council Management Report has been split into two parts - one covering the four operational indicators and one covering only corporate governance.