PUTRAJAYA, MALAYSIA - Most of the complaints received by the Public Complaints Bureau are about local authorities. But in many cases, the blame lies with clients who fail to follow procedures and file incomplete applications.

Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon said public servants must, therefore, strive to ensure that they obtain complete information from their clients to avoid such problems.

"Most of the complaints (about local authorities) were about delays in the approval of applications for licences and permits, and building plans," he told a seminar on managing public complaints yesterday.

The PCB receives about 11,000 complaints a month. Koh said the high number is because it had been made easier to lodge a complaint. Some 40 per cent of the complaints are sent by email and SMS text messages.

Aside from the local authorities, other agencies that top the list are those that have direct dealings with the public, including the police and the National Registration and Immigration departments.

In his remarks to reporters, Koh also blasted Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng for failing to walk his talk on transparency regarding Kampung Lorong Buah Pala.

Koh said he had agreed to a debate with Lim on the issue, but Lim was not ready to be transparent by declassifying and making public the full text of minutes of the discussions and decisions on the village in exco meetings chaired by Koh and by Lim since the general election, and other documents.

On Thursday, the Gerakan president and former Penang chief minister said he was ready for a nationally televised debate with his successor not only on Kampung Lorong Buah Pala but also on transparency issues.

--New Straits Times