Faulty parking meter & my letter to the Mayor

I was recently fined for a "traffic offence" in Brickfields due to a faulty parking meter. I am sure many motorists in Kuala Lumpur have faced similar situations, hence the need to seek clarifications.

Here's a copy of my letter, e-mailed to DBKL (Kuala Lumpur City Hall) on June 2nd, 2007:

Dear Datuk Bandar,

I would like to highlight the problem of faulty parking meters facing many motorists in Kuala Lumpur.

The following is an account of my experience with a faulty parking meter along Jalan Tun Sambanthan 4, KL (Petak: F312B). The parking meter was not working yet an enforcement officer issued a traffic summon. This email seeks DBKL's views on such cases and has been copied to the relevant public awareness channels.

On Friday, 25 May 2007 (10:15 am), I had parked my car in a valid parking bay along Jalan Tun Sambanthan 4, KL (Petak: F312B). The designated parking meter was a digital unit. I tried putting up to 90 sen in coins (2x10 sen, 20 sen & 50 sen), but the meter kept displaying 00:00. I took it that the meter was not functioning as it should have. I then tried to call the given number for "Aduan Kerosakan": Saripati (M) Sdn Bhd (03-92876986), but received no response. I then decided to leave my car to proceed with my errands.

Upon returning to my car at 11:45am, I noticed that a summon was left on my windscreen. I was fined for breaking Perintah 8(1) - "Letak tanpa bayar caj meter". I have attached a copy of the summon with this letter.

I then proceeded to call Saripati (M) Sdn Bhd again, and this time I was directed to call another company -- Syarikat Kejuruteraan Elektrik Suria (SKES, 03-78476657). As I was told, Saripati (M) Sdn Bhd was no longer in charge of the maintenance of parking meters in the area. Upon calling SKES, a lady by the name of Ms. Devi attended to my call and mentioned that their company was now in charge of handling
maintenance on a daily basis, and it was up to me to prove that the meter was not working in the event of a summon.

I strongly believe my recent experience affects many other motorists in KL on a daily basis, and I would like to seek answers to the following questions:

1) In the event of a parking meter failure, what should we as law abiding citizens do? Are we allowed to park in these parking bays?
2) Why hasn't DBKL made changes to the notice boards in Jalan Tun Sambanthan 4 to indicate the new maintenance company?
3) In most cases, motorists would write a note and stick it on their car windscreen / parking meter -- is this an accepted practice to avoid getting fined?
4) Is the burden of proof laid upon motorists? If so, what proof is required for a waiver?

I would like to seek DBKL's clarification on the status of the fine imposed on me, and would appreciate your understanding on this matter. In actual fact, I did insert sufficient money into the meter, and also tried calling the designated number for maintenance. As such, it would only be appropriate for DBKL to waive the fine of RM10. While this is a small amount, I believe it is necessary that the local authorities take steps to curb a recurrence of such matters.

For your information, this complaint was initially lodged with the e-Aduan service (http://bhea.dbkl.gov.my) on 26 May 2007. However, it was rejected on 28 May 2007 and I was asked to refer the case to Pengarah, Jabatan Hal Ehwal Undang-Undang. I have attached a screenshot of the E-Aduan rejection (bhea-e-aduan-rejection.jpg) for your reference.

Thank you for your time and attention. I am looking forward to hearing from DBKL and can be reached via email or mobile (012-XXXXXXX).

I have also copied the email to The Star and New Straits Times. I am hoping for some answers, at the very least to clarify the question as to whether I should avoid parking bays with faulty meters.

Copy of my traffic summons:


Screenshot of my e-Aduan filed online which was subsequently rejected by DBKL: