Many visitors ever-present at the Star's annual exhibition
Sunday July 24, 2011
GEORGE TOWN: A number of visitors to The Star Property Fair 2011 are regulars who return year after year. Among them were university senior lecturer Dr Chai Kok Soon, 38, and his wife, sales director Lee Ning Ju, 34, who brought along their son Kah Xiang, four, and daughter Kah Wei, two.
Dr Chai said they had already invested in several properties in Penang and Singapore. “We are not looking for anything in particular, we just want to understand the market right now, what the trend is like,” said Lee.
Manager Saw Heng Soo, 55, who also visited the fair last year, said property prices had gone up by about 20% to 30% per sqft this year.
“I'm looking at terrace houses but I prefer corner lots as they feel more like semi-detached units,” he said. Saw said he had bought a landed property in Paya Terubong but was looking for something in the Queensbay area as he expected property prices there to appreciate faster.
Housing and Local Government Minister Datuk Chor Chee Heung was among the VIPs who visited the four-day fair held at Level 2 of G Hotel and the ground floor of Gurney Plaza here.
Chor, who is also MCA vice-president, was accompanied by Star Publications (M) Bhd deputy group chief editor (I) David Yeoh and local MCA leaders during his visit on Friday.
The fair, in its ninth edition, is organised by The Star in collaboration with Henry Butcher Malaysia (Penang) Sdn Bhd and is touted as Penang's premier property expo.
There are 36 exhibitors, including IJM Land, Ivory Properties Group, Belleview Group, DNP Land Sdn Bhd, Nusmetro Venture (Pg) Sdn Bhd, Sunway Grand Sdn Bhd, Mah Sing Group Bhd, MTT Properties and Development Sdn Bhd, Reka Indah Development (Pg) Sdn Bhd, Ideal Property Sdn Bhd, SP Setia and Boon Siew Group (BSG Property).
Other exhibitors include Plenitude Heights Sdn Bhd, Triental Land Sdn Bhd, GD Development Sdn Bhd, Lone Pine Group of Companies, ResCom Asia Sdn Bhd, Capitawealth International Sdn Bhd, KPWG International Sdn Bhd, Tambun Indah Development Sdn Bhd, Bukit Kiara Properties Sdn Bhd, E&O Bhd and Jalin Realty.
Henry Butcher is also featuring projects by Magna Putih Sdn Bhd and several properties in Australia and England by various developers. A popular feature of the fair is the series of talks related to property, investment, financing, law, heritage and feng shui held in the stage area at the new wing of Gurney Plaza and in Salon III and IV at G Hotel.
Visitors stand a chance to win prizes totalling RM30,000 in the “Surf, Click & Win” contest sponsored by IJM Land. Ten prizes are up for grabs, including a 32-inch Samsung LCD television, Acer Iconia Tabs, Samsung Galaxy Tabs and Parkson vouchers.
To participate, cut out the “Surf, Click & Win” coupon in The Star.
12:19 PM | |
IN a bid to encourage Penangites to be more environmentally friendly, the state Barisan Nasional gave out 500 biodegradable bags to Air Itam market goers during its weekly walkabouts.
State Umno chief Datuk Zainal Abidin Osman, who led the walkabout, said the event was meant to foster closer relationship between the state Barisan committee and the people, and to listen to their problems and dilemma.
Twenty grassroots members joined this walkabout. It was the fourth one, with the other three earlier held in the Bayan Baru, Jelutong and Nibong Tebal constituencies.
Also present at the walkabout were Barisan information chief Datuk Dr Loga Bala Mohan and MCA adviser Datuk Koay Kar Huah, who is also Bukit Gelugor Barisan coordinator. The state Barisan committee will be giving out 50,000 biodegradable bags during the walkabouts which is to be held every Monday for 13 consecutive weeks covering each parliamentary constituency.
11:10 PM | |
Tee Yong: Focus on people’s concerns for the environs
GEORGE TOWN: MCA presidential council member Chua Tee Yong has urged the state government to seek the people’s views more often instead of adopting a self-righteous attitude. Chua said the Pakatan Rakyat government should discard the mindset that “Komtar knows best” and reach out to the people for feedback and be sensitive to their concerns about the environment.
“When Barisan Nasional was the ruling party in Penang, the Opposition kicked up a big fuss that we were too focused on development. But now, Pakatan is the government and they seem to be more concerned about development projects than us, particularly in Batu Ferringhi and Balik Pulau.” He said Pakatan should stop excessive development as it may endanger the ecology of the two pristine areas. He said this at a dialogue with the farmers in Balik Pulau yesterday.
On the presence of illegal workers, Chua who is the Deputy Agriculture and Agro-Based Industries Minister, urged their employers to legalise them as the registration fees had been reduced. He urged the farmers to explore the loan facility available at the AgroBank’s Fund which was set up to increase food production and to reduce its import bill.
“There is still about RM200mil of funds available for loans. The interest rate is only between 3.75% and 4% which is among the lowest in the market,” he said. Chua also spoke about stabilising the prices of Malaysia’s king of fruits — durians. “Since 2007, the prices of durians have been on an uptrend. However in 2009 and 2010 more collection centres were set up to act as a network where durians are brought and transported to areas with high demand. This has helped stabilise the prices of durians in the local market,” he said.
“There is also good response to the durian paste that is used for many food items because it retains the unique flavour of the durian while lowering the pungent smell, which is why, it is also popular overseas,” said Chua. He later mingled with the farmers who were enjoying a variety of fruits such as durians, rambutans and mangosteens.
10:57 PM | |
MCA medical fund to help cover cost of treatment
Saturday July 23, 2011
PENANG MCA has stepped forward to help the family of visually impaired Lu Ching Hong, 12, who is suffering from a rare skin disease known as the Stevens-Johnson syndrome.
This condition affects the eye.
Penang MCA secretary Lau Chiek Tuan told the boy’s mother Ong Goay Har, 39, that he would do his best to obtain aid from the 1MCA Medical Foundation. He said the fund’s administrator would release the money to the hospital where the boy is seeking treatment after the doctors endorses the family’s application form. Lau said this after visiting Ching Hong at his house in Taman Perwira, Permatang Tinggi near here on Thursday. Permatang Tinggi village security and development committee chairman Ong You Hock accompanied him. Lau visited the boy following a report in The Star on July 15 about the plight of the 12-year-old. The lad from SRK (C) Permatang Tinggi pupil was diagnosed with the disease earlier this year.
Doctors had warned that the boy faced the risk of losing his eyesight permanently.
He was also advised by the doctors to remain indoors after he complained of a burning sensation in both his eyes. Lau also said that the family could also claim from the same fund for the proposed follow-up treatment in Singapore, provided they have exhausted all means to find a cure here. Ching Hong has been suffering from blurred vision on his left eye for the last three weeks, and he is being treated at the Penang Hospital and the one in Sungai Buloh.
He was advised to use contact lenses but he needs to change the lens on a weekly basis.
Ong informed Lau that the family had spent more than RM50,000 at a private hospital in Penang to seek treatment for the syndrome.
The boy is scheduled to undergo eye surgery at the Sungai Buloh Hospital next Tuesday.
The family has also obtained an appointment with the Singapore International Eye Centre on Aug 3 for a second opinion.
2:57 PM | |
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