Kuching: The Kuching South City Council (MBKS) and Kuching North City Hall (DBKU) have been urged to strengthen their oversight of the Pay&Go parking system by introducing real-time notifications and requiring photographic evidence for every Overparking Notice issued to users.
DAPSY Kuching Chief George Lam said the local authorities, as the contracting authorities responsible for the city’s parking fee collection services, must ensure the system operates transparently and fairly, rather than allowing users to bear unreasonable charges arising from weaknesses in its implementation.
The call comes amid growing complaints from members of the public over the Pay&Go parking system, with some users alleging they were unknowingly charged parking fees or only discovered Overparking Notices after manually checking the application.
Lam said the absence of real-time notifications has left users unaware of additional charges until much later, undermining confidence in the system.
He also highlighted concerns about senior citizens using the Elderly Easy Payment (EEP) feature, which automatically deducts parking charges from stored balances.
According to Lam, many elderly users who are unfamiliar with smartphone applications have no way of knowing when, where, or how much has been deducted unless they actively log in to the system.
“In some cases, users only realised their balances had been exhausted after accumulating outstanding parking charges,” he said.
Lam further questioned why the Pay&Go parking system does not provide photographic evidence or indicate the parking bay number when issuing an Overparking Notice.
“Without such supporting information, users are unable to independently verify whether an overstay actually occurred,” he said.
He called on MBKS and DBKU to explain whether the parking operator has fulfilled its commitment to conduct patrols every 30 minutes and capture photographic evidence before issuing Overparking Notices.
He also questioned user complaints that they had been issued notices even though they had left their parking bays within the stipulated parking period.
While acknowledging the convenience of digital parking, Lam stressed that the issue lies not in digitalisation itself but in the lack of transparency in its implementation.
Lam added that DAP Sarawak would continue to scrutinise parking fee collection services provided by local authorities to ensure accountability and safeguard the interests of the people.
