STRATA homeowners in Petaling Jaya are constantly battling with a host of issues and they usually involve residents living in the same building. Often the problems goes unresolved when residents are at loggerheads with each other, disagreeing with their respective joint management board (JMB) or management corporation (MC). “We get many complaints daily from these homeowners when they are not able to come to a mutual agreement,” said Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) Commissioner of Buildings (COB) director Jayanthi Kupusamy, who only has a handful of staff to assist residents with such issues. She said in Petaling Jaya alone, her team had to conduct checks on 1,252 strata schemes in the city, covering apartments, condominiums, multistorey buildings and flats. Among the most common issues her department has dealt with are money swindling, fights between MC and residents as well as water leakage between floors. “Although we have no power to tell the MC or JMB what to do, we (COB) can act as a mediator to help them resolve their issues amicably,” she said during the launch of the High Rise Security and Safety Manual at Civic Centre in Petaling Jaya. The book is written by Eric Chew, who is treasurer of Petaling Jaya-based community group MyPJ, in collaboration with the Petaling Jaya parliamentary office and Selangor housing and urban living committee. Jayanthi said in a growing city, both the MC or JMB of more affluent strata homes are usually popular among residents as opposed to the one for lower-income groups.