PETALING JAYA: The Selangor Lands and Mines Department has removed the daily quota of registering land transactions, currently restricted due to the conditional movement control order (CMCO).
A letter issued by department director Yusri Zakariah said it had agreed to conduct limitless transactions via its “Smartbox ” system from today.
In the letter, sighted by FMT, he said the department had received requests from many parties, especially legal firms, to raise the capacity to make payments.
Yusri said it is hoped the decision would enable all parties to carry out land transactions and other matters with the department and help the state revive its economy in the real estate sector.
Early this month, the Selangor Bar Committee had urged the department to increase the daily quota for land transactions, even though it had raised the limit from 200 to 300.
Its chairman, V Murali,had said the number was still grossly insufficient.
“We need a higher daily quota or no restriction at all in registering land transactions as the state is a vibrant economic hub,” he told FMT.
He was commenting on the “Smartbox” system, which allows 300 daily transactions to be conducted at the department’s headquarters in Shah Alam as only 30% of the staff were working in the office because of the CMCO.
Under the system, legal firms would key in details of a specific land transaction online and the system would generate a payment bill the next day.
However, due to the limited transactions allowed each day, many were unable to make payments even though lawyers and clerks woke as early as 5am to “queue”.
This is because there are some firms which conduct more than one transaction, especially entry of caveats, charges or transfers.
Malaysian Bar secretary AG Kalidas had said the department staff should be able to produce between 70% and 80% of work they performed while in office even though most of them were working from home.
He said it did not reflect well on the department when lawyers and clerks had to wake up early to make payments, and that a delay in registering transactions could also lead to agreements being terminated and deposit payments forfeited. – FMT