KOTA KINABALU: City Hall has been urged to give the public a six-month grace period before implementing strict enforcement against illegal parking, including towing vehicles.
Kapayan assemblyman Chin Teck Ming said it was important for Kota Kinabalu City Hall (DBKK) to educate citizens on the law before continuing its crackdown.
Chin said law enforcement should always be accompanied by public education.
"A gradual approach will allow the public to adapt to DBKK's renewed commitment towards stricter parking enforcement while avoiding unnecessary hardship to ordinary citizens," he said in a statement on Thursday (June 18).
He said it was DBKK's responsibility to enforce parking by-laws and ensure public order but he was concerned the "sudden and aggressive nature" of the enforcement exercise, particularly towing vehicles and issuing summonses without sufficient public awareness.
"I urge DBKK to consider a six-month grace period before resorting to such drastic enforcement action.
"During this period, it should focus on educating the public, increasing awareness of parking regulations, issuing warnings, and engaging with communities to ensure that residents and motorists fully understand the rules," he added.
Chin also noted that there was a shortage of adequate parking facilities in many parts of the city.
"In commercial centres and residential neighbourhoods alike, motorists often face genuine difficulties in getting proper parking.
"Enforcement officers should first issue warning notices and summonses as available enforcement mechanisms before towing, which imposes substantial financial burdens on affected vehicle owners," he said.
Chin urged the local authority to adopt a "reasonable and balanced" approach to its enforcement actions, stressing that the realities faced by the public must also be taken into consideration.
He said DBKK should also speed up the creation of additional parking spaces in high-density areas as a long-term solution.
"The people are not opposed to rules. What they seek is fairness, understanding, and reasonable implementation," he said.
Over the past few months, DBKK has towed away illegally-parked vehicles.
The action has drawn mixed reactions from the public, some supporting it and others against it owing to the limited parking options.
DBKK said many motorists parked their vehicles in undesignated areas despite over 20,000 parking bays being available in and around the city centre.
Ir added that there are sufficient parking facilities to ensure smooth traffic flow and road user safety within the city centre.
Motorists whose vehicles are towed incur a fine, towing charge and a daily storage fee in the impound lot.
