KUALA LUMPUR – Around 1,500 residents of Taman Perwira 1 and Taman Setia in Gombak near here fear that the removal of security barriers by Selayang Municipal Council (MPS) last Friday will see more non-residents entering their housing area.
The security gate that was put up in 2008 by the Perwira Setia Indah Welfare Body (BKPSI), with guard services added afterwards, had previously succeeded in lowering the crime rate around the housing estate, which has 230 homes.
Chief security officer of BKPSI, Zamri Abd Rahman, said since the security barriers were removed by MPS, motorcycles from nearby housing areas and non-resident vehicles have been more daring to enter the housing area than before.
This makes BKPSI’s role to control the entry of non-residents more difficult, and raises the possibility of increased crime, he said.
“The road here is an access point for residents from nearby housing areas but we have never prevented them from going through. In fact, we open the barrier every morning and evening for parents to drop off and pick up their children from the SK Taman Setia, which is located inside (the area).
“With the safety barriers, we can record the names and addresses (of those) who pass through this road either just to go to another housing area or to visit the residents here.
“But now, we are a bit worried that crime will be rampant again after the entry of non-residents into this housing area, and we cannot control them all the time,” he told The Vibes here.
Last Friday, the MPS Enforcement and Security Department removed all the security barriers at Jalan Akik, Jalan Berlian and Jalan Zamrud, and also issued three compounds to BKPSI totaling RM1,500.
MPS also warned BKPSI not to place any more bars at the housing estate’s three security posts.
Around 40% of the residents in the affected housing area are aged over 65.
A resident of Taman Perwira 1, Datuk Mohd Hassan Ibrahim, feared that criminal cases such as mugging, snatch theft and burglary will be rampant again.
His own house had been broken into in broad daylight previously, when he and his wife opened their gate and were about to park their vehicle inside.
Another resident, Hassan Laham, also said he was worried the crime rate here would rise again.
“Just last month near Jalan Intan outside of this housing area, there was a snatch theft incident that resulted in an elderly woman getting injured.”
A resident of Taman Setia, Azvee Abdullah, urged MPS to talk to BKPSI as well as the Fire and Rescue Department immediately to reinstate the security gate. – The Vibes, August 23, 2022
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