According to Sabah state Local Government and Housing Minister Datuk Seri Dr Joachim Gunsalam, the Sandakan Municipal Council has not yet submitted a proposal to increase assessment rates to the Sabah government for this year.
Gunsalam expressed his uncertainty about what decision can be made since the council has not sent in their proposal yet.
Residents in Sandakan are uncertain whether the proposed rate increase has been put on hold or if it will still be implemented, despite the fact that assessment payments for the year are already due.
To address claims on social media that the rates would not be increased, council president Henry Idol issued a statement dismissing these claims earlier on Tuesday.
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Idol clarified that no official statement had been issued by the council on the matter.
Despite claims from politicians and community leaders that the rates would not be increased this year, no official statement has been made on the matter.
In light of the current economic situation, they argued that the state government should not implement the proposed hike.
While it is unclear what the proposed new rates are, some business owners have stated that the increase for their premises ranges from 30% to 80%.
The council has claimed that they have not increased rates for “a long time”, despite being required by law to conduct a review every four years.
