Vandalism in USJ 11/3L

Dear Residents,

There were reports of 5 cases of cars vandalised this morning. Paints were splashed on these cars along 3L. We suspect the vandals came through one of the small gates as there were signs/stains of paint at one of the gates in 3P.

We suspect the attack was carried out sometime in the early hours between 2am - 5 am for whatever reasons unknown to us. This still happened despite our guards constantly patrolling the area.

Here are some of the shots taken:









The need to brighten up the respective streets is now becoming more urgent. We have already made the necessary application to TNB and are now awaiting for approval. We hope that once we obtain the necessary approval, we will have all the lamp posts lighted up. This will hopefully prevent such incidences from recurring again.

Please again, do not take our security for granted. Always take the necessary precautions and be alert always.

The Committee
11 Trees @ USJ

Happy Wesak Day!

Dear Residents,

Today is a special day for our Buddhist brothers and sisters in our 'kampong', as they take time off to join millions around the world to celebrate and pay respect to the Lord Buddha on his birthday, his attainment of enlightenment as well as to commemorate his death.

This is also the time to spread good virtues and values amongst one family, neighbours and country as taught by Lord Buddha. Such values which will keep us together and to live in harmony.

Like all other religions, Buddhism teaches one to be compassionate to another fellow human being and to do good to others.

In Malaysia, because of the many diverse cultures where religions are practised in our own diverse ways, we also come together to celebrate our common values. And today is no different and that makes us truly special!

The Committee would like to take this opportunity to wish all our Buddhist residents Happy Wesak Day!

The Committee
11 Trees @ USJ

Prevention of Crime - whose job is it?

Dear Residents,

We started our G&G in late 2008 and since that time, we have had rather peaceful sleeps and a relatively safe environment in USJ11/3 despite escalated criminal cases reported in other areas of Subang Jaya and USJ.

Perhaps this sense of safety has also led to many people letting their guard down and have started to take things for granted. And with so many areas now under watch with similar G&G scheme, the criminals do not have much choices as to where else to target to commit their dastardly acts.

So what do they do? Simple - they come back! But they now operate with greater speed, better planning and greater efficiencies and under very different circumstances.

This was what happpened in USJ 11/3 a few days ago. Four houses were broken into almost simultaneously on the same day with much valuables carted away. So, why has this happened?

Indeed, while our G&G has successfully kept incidences of snatch thieves and car thefts almost a hundred percent at bay, we have still not successfully tackled incidences of house break-ins. As the occupants leave their houses to do their business outside, their vulnerability to house break-ins increases significantly and unfortunately, empty houses attracts opportunists!

The modus operandi has shifted to committing these crimes in broad daylight as this is the time when most occupants leave their houses for work or school, leaving their homes empty for the picking. From the burglar's view-point, there are plenty of targets to choose from!

Here are some disturbing trends:

1. Houses broken into thus far DO NOT have alarm systems or CCTVs installed.
2. The houses were not properly secured for example double locking while some were without grill.
3. The front portion of the houses are obscured by overgrown trees, drying laundry, etc.
4. There is almost a fix pattern on when the occupants leave and return to their homes making it almost predictable for the criminals to know when to strike.
5. The crime happened between 10am to 4pm.
6. There were also signs of carelessness amongst the victims such as not locking their premise properly.

The committee take these recent spate of opportunistic break-ins in USJ 11/3 seriously and we are going to do something about it. We have in fact, taken the first step in meeting with the new OSC of Balai Polis USJ8, Puan Chia, last Friday at her invitation, to discuss collective measures on how we can prevent these crimes from happening again.


The Committee, meeting with Puan Chia, the new OCS at Balai Polis USJ8

The committee will also be convening a meeting very soon to address this issue and put in place mitigative measures as soon as possible. This will include reviewing some of the security measures currently in operation and to take further steps to enhance and improve it.

Among them, conducting more stringent checks at the entrances. So please be prepared especially if you are non-paying resident and yet choose not to display the stickers we provide you for free. We will stop you or any other vehicles coming into USJ 11/3 if there are no valid stickers prominently displayed.

Anyway, whose responsibilty is it to ensure our safety? Is it the police, or in our case, the committee members or perhaps the security guards we employ?

All of us have our own opinion but in reality it is non-exclusive and that really means the responsibility belongs to all of us. We ALL have a part to play as we are the stake holders to this very need. So, please do not harp on the fact that such crimes have to be taken care of by the committee or the police or the guards. You are equally as responsible.

You, as a resident, have an important role to play. For example, you can start by ensuring that you report vehicles moving around in our area in a suspicious manner as they may be carrying out surveillances to mark their next targets. You can note down the time, the make of the car, registration number and report it to the committee as soon as possible so that we can take immediate action.

And if you have not secured your own premise such as installing alarm system or even CCTVs, perhaps you might want to seriously consider doing this. Do not just rely on the security guards or the police as your safety nets. Think of the guards and the police as a layer to enhance your own security rather than replacing what you may or may not have put in place.

Remember, the idea here is to make it as difficult as possible for the criminals to conduct their business. And if you are going to leave your house for long periods of time, please do inform the guards. They will ensure that your premise be closely watched when they do their rounds.

We all need to come together as a community and in collaboration with the police, we hope to deter crime in our neighbourhood and help make it a more secure and safe place for our families. Do not take your safety and the safety of your families for granted as this can also happen to you.

The Committee
11 Trees @ USJ

A First For Lady Cop

Friday May 21, 2010

From The Star
By THO XIN YI
thoxinyi@thestar.com.my

THE USJ community in Subang Jaya welcomed their very first female officer-in-charge of the USJ 8 police station recently.

Insp Chia Bee Chuan took over the reins from ASP Loi Yew Lik, who has served the community for slightly more than a year.

Formerly with the vice, gambling and secret society branch (D7) of the Subang Jaya police district headquarters, Kelantan-born Chia said she would first study the crime cases in USJ to understand the area better.


Getting to know you: Insp Chia (left) introducing herself to the residents associations’ representatives as Insp Muniandy (right) snaps a photo of her.

“I will then think of ways to reduce the crime at hotspots, and maintain the situation at safe zones,” the master’s degree holder in Information Technology said.

Growing up in an all-female family, Chia said she has always played the role of protector and the job of a police officer was challenging.

Together with the new Bandar Sunway police station officer-in-charge Insp Muniandy Rethiah, Chia was feted at a dinner organised by SJ Alert and Subang Jaya assemblyman Hannah Yeoh.

Representatives from the residents associations turned up to welcome the new police officers, as well as bid farewell to Loi and outgoing Bandar Sunway officer-in-charge Harikrishnan Muralytharan.

Harikrishnan hoped the people would render the same support to his successor, Muniandy.

Formerly with the logistics division of the Subang Jaya police district headquarters, Muniandy said he harboured an ambition to contribute to the community since his school days.

He joined the police force in March 1988.

In 2008, he was posted to Sudan for the United Nations mission for a year.

“The Bandar Sunway residents associations are very active. It motivates us to be even more committed to fight crime,” the father of four said.

Loi, on the other hand, has been transferred to the Bukit Aman Criminal Investigation Department.

Loi said he was sad to leave USJ after only a short stint.

“It was an eye-opening experience and you cannot find such close relationships between the police and residents associations in many places.

“Chia is a capable lady and I am sure USJ will have a much better officer-in-charge,” he said.

A Double Whammy!

Dear Residents,

The inevitable has happened today.

Two houses were broken into in USJ 11/3. The victims' houses were ransacked and valuables including money, laptop, jewelery were among the items stolen.

The time when the houses were most likely broken into was between 1 pm - 5 pm. The way the crime was committed seemed to suggest that the houses were marked before the break in took place as the thieves seemed to know when the occupants of the houses were out on their business.

The Committee views these incidences seriously. As such, we will be convening a meeting very soon to discuss ways to prevent this from happening. This would most likely mean we will be intensifying our security checks particularly during the vulnerable times. So, please brace yourselves for stringent checks soon at our checkpoints.

But in the meantime, here are some tips for you on how to stay secure:

1. Ensure you lock all doors if you are out - double lock if you have to.
2. Install an alarm system if you have not already done so.
3. Install CCTV it you can afford to do so.
4. Inform your neighbours if you are going out.
5. If your neighbours are not around then notify the gusrds so that they can keep a look out for you when you are away.
6. Look out for unusual and suspicious characters and report them.
7. Hide all your valuables and cash in areas where it is difficult to find.
8. Thieves will look into cupboards and drawers as most of our valuables will be kept in places like these so avoid putting your valuables there.

And if you are unfortunate and do become a victim, make a police report immediately and also do inform the Committee as soon as you can. We will try to assist you in whatever way we can.

Most of all, do not take your safety and security for granted.

Be safe.

Regards,

The Committee
11 Trees @ USJ

Dengue Alert

Dear Residents,

The Health Department from MPSJ will be focusing on fogging and checking our neighbourhood in USJ11 for the dreaded Aedes mosquito and larvae to keep the spread of dengue in check.

Do you know that USJ11 recorded the highest incidence of Dengue fever in the country?

As such, please do not take this reminder lightly as it is indeed a very real threat. There are reported dengue related deaths. Do your part and ensure the surroundings around your house and the compound area are clean and free of stagnant water/containers.

Please do cooperate with the officers from MPSJ when they come to do their inspection rounds. Do your part to help keep the dengue menace at bay. It is after all for our own safety.

Thank you.

The Committee
11 Trees @ USJ

Idris's NKRA and KPI Achieved!!? Yeah Right!

Dear Residents,

Of late, you would have read many opinions and/or reports in the local dailies on the G&G issue. Some were against the idea of implementing the G&G while some were for these types of schemes.

Why G&G?

Why the hassle of us doing more work and yet NOT getting paid for it?

Why? Is it that we are looking for 'glamour' as some politicians have put it?

I cannot speak for the other areas but for USJ 11/3, the security situation before we started had gotten worse without any signs of improvement in sight. As such, it was out of this dire need that we decided that enough is enough. And with whatever limited resources we could muster then and with sheer determination, our RA successfully launched our own G&G and security system way back in late 2008.

It took a lot of hard work and sacrifices, with many hours spent on a voluntary basis before we achieved this success. We were also fortunate as we had a lot of support from our residents although it took a lot of effort to get the people to understand and support it in the beginning.

Of course, we could not have done it without the support of the local authority and the local 'resource-scarced' police force as well. Since we established our G&G, the crime rate in our area has dropped significantly and had stayed that way since.

Then there was the government's initiative to reduce crime rate by 20%. It was only a few months ago when the government launched the National Key Results Area (NKRA) in a highly publicised public relations campaign at the Sunway Lagoon Resort Hotel. They had invited some of the RAs to attend and we were one of them.

Some of us from our RA attended the launch and we were impressed with the initiatives announced. We also believed that some of these initiatives, if successful, would help solve some of these security issues and to help reduce the escalating crime rate in our country.

And in recent reports in the newspapers, the government have boldly claimed in their report card that they have managed to bring the crime rate down. But have they really? If so, can they really claim all the credit to these achievements?

Months have passed since that big public relations campaign in Sunway. But what results have we gotten in this area - security? The way I see it - not much!

And why do I say that?

Just take a look around you and see for yourselves. More and more G&G initiatives have been started by impatient residents especially in Subang Jaya/USJ areas in recent months. It seem to give me the impression that nothing has changed and that the residents really have no choice but to do something to fend for themselves.

While such G&G schemes have brought the crime rate down and hence it would also have most certainly help in the government's KPI that is related to crime, the very same government also announced that there will be new guidelines for residents to establish their G&G so as to bring some control over such initiatives which is understandable.

The irony is, the proposed new guidelines, if implemented, would make most, if not all, of such initiatives fall apart and that will include ours!

The most glaring and ridiculous requirement is the one that requires 100% agreement from the ALL the residents before they can start such schemes. This will obviously set the stage for complete failure as it will be impossible to get that kind of support. I mean, 100%!!? Come on!

The point I am making here is that, the government must realise by now that they are not able to resolve the security issue effectively alone. Hence, creating smart partnerships with RAs should be the next best thing. Rather than making it difficult for the RAs, perhaps they should start thinking what they can do to help the RAs improve the security issues with more practical guidelines so as to legalise such schemes.

Perhaps they should also make such expenditure tax exempted to encourage all the residents to pay for such services. The government can also help by subsidising infrastructure costs or at least allocate some funds for such schemes to take off easily. Ultimately, it will be a win-win situation for all.

I am not sure if the folks at Datuk Seri Jala's or Tan Sri Koh Tsu Koon's ministry will be reading this. It does not really matter anyway as our RA will continue to work with the same dedication and determination to ensure we are safe even if it only means providing that just within our residential area.

Hence, we hope that you folks in USJ 11/3 will not take this service for granted. Please understand that we, the Committee members, are doing this to help ourselves. The time for collecting your subscription starts again soon so please do help us by paying up your subscriptions as early as possible.

Your Committee members have worked tirelessly for this scheme to to be set up and have continued to make improvements to our security system since we started. Please do not disappoint them as without your support, all the hardwork for the past couple of years will go down the drain.

This will happen as once our financial resources runs out, we will have no choice but to abandon the scheme and we will then have to go back to square one!

It is really your choice.


Thank you.

Jeffrey Khoo
Advisor
11 Trees @ USJ