/// East Malaysia Property News
MoU Signed to Provide Internet
Service to I-Office Tower
ID Tags for Registered Real Estate Agents
From May 1
other sources, such as a
property owner.
“But what we want to do
is to encourage people
to seek the services
of the registered ones
because they are
governed by the law on
how they carry out their
services in this industry.
Perspective of ITCC
Developer of the ITCCPenampang, Sabanilam
Enterprise Sdn Bhd,
sealed a Memorandum of
Understanding (MoU) with
SEDCO Communications (S.
Comm), Monday, to develop an
A Grade I-Office Tower making
it among the first buildings in
Sabah to meet the Malaysia
Cybercentre standard.
Through the MoU, SEDCO
Communications would be one
of the Internet service providers
for the I-Office Tower.
“We are excited with this
connectivity as S. Comm will
have dedicated and ondemand high capacity Internet
bandwidth and high-speed
international capacity access
which fulfils one of the criteria
for A Grade and Cybercentre
facilities,” said Group General
Manager of Sabanilam
Enterprise Sdn Bhd, Caesar
Mandela Malakun.
S. Comm Chief Executive
Officer, Jasmi Adnan Thien, said
the MoU will be the catalyst for
increasing competition and an
alternative to existing service
providers, hence bringing about
better price-quality match and
data speed transfer, taking into
consideration the accessibility in
related businesses.
I-Office Tower is one of the
components in the new
mixed-development property
hailed as “The New Landmark
of Penampang” situated at
the Penampang by-Pass listed
under the Sabah Development
Corridor.
ITCC-Penampang has a built-
40
up area of 1.68 million sq ft
that consists of a four-storey
shopping mall with 675 retail
outlets, 295 condominium Hotel
Suites, a 330-room business
hotel, 170 table Banquet Hall,
Exhibition Centres for MICE and
a 16-storey I-Office Tower.
The signature project of
Malakun Holdings Sdn Bhd
is being developed by its
subsidiary Sabanilam Enterprise
Sdn Bhd and is poised for
completion at the end of 2015.
S Comm is a subsidiary of
SEDCO, which is licensed
to provide fibre optic
infrastructure and broadband
bandwidth services throughout
Sabah.
S Comm, in 2012, signed
a Memorandum of
Understanding with Brunei
International Gateway (BIG)
Sdn Bhd to collaborate in
implementing the Brunei,
Indonesia, Malaysia and the
Philippines Asean Growth Area
(BIMP-EAGA Rink) under the
BEST Cable Project, a project to
link up the sub-region through
fibre optic and satellite.
Upon completion, the project
is expected to propel the BIMPEAGA region into a central hub
for investments, promote socioeconomic development and
improve the people’s quality
of life.
S Comm would be able to
improve the Internet bandwidth
capacity in Sabah by tapping
into BIG international capacities,
namely the Asia America
Gateway (AAG) and Southeast
Asia Japan Cable systems (SJC).
www.PropertyHunter.com.my
Chairman of Estate Agent Practice Committee Board
member, Eric Lim showing the property agents
authority tag during the press conference on tightening
of real estate industry regulations in Putrajaya
Real estate agents
and their negotiators
need to carry an official
identification tag from
May 1 to distinguish
them from bogus
agents.
The tags, available only
to registered agents
and their negotiators,
will contain a Quick
Response (QR) code
which can be verified
on any QR code reader
device or mobile ap
plication.
The new identification
system is aimed at
weeding out illegal
players in the real
estate industry and
to increase public
confidence in the
profession, said the
Finance Mi
nistry’s
valuation and property
services department
director-general Datuk
Abdul Hamid Abu Bakar.
“This (registration and
identification) exercise
shall also minimise
the number of illegal
agents who may be
involved in unhealthy
practices which mars
the credibility of the
profession. This is not a
licensing exercise but a
form of registration by
the board.
“Through this process,
negotiators will be
held accountable for
their actions via their
respective supervising
registrants (real estate
agents),” Abdul Hamid
told a press conference
here yesterday.
A real estate agent is
a qualified individual
who has completed
an examination set by
the Board of Valuers,
Appraisers and Estate
Agents (Bovaea).
These agents are
licensed to employ
up to 20 real estate
negotiators to assist
them in carrying out
their tasks.
There are currently
1,779 real estate agents
and 16,243 negotiators
registered with the
board.
Abdul Hamid, who is
the board’s president,
said that it estimated
that illegal agents or
negotiators could make
up more than half of
those in the field.
“There is no law to
say that you can only
buy from registered
real estate agents and
negotiators, as you can
also buy directly from
“The illegals are not
registered so they are
not subjected to the
(Va
luers, Appraiser
and Estate Agents) Act,
which means they may
carry out irresponsible
acts that could
jeopardise the buyer’s
interests,” Abdul Hamid
said.
Under Section 30 of the
Act, real estate valuers,
appraisers and agents
who commit an offence
are liable to a fine not
exceeding RM300,000
or imprisonment
not exceeding three
years or both upon
conviction.