Rallying Support

Tips for Stayers in En Bloc Meetings

Your palms are sweating. You never thought you'd speak up in a public meeting. You and your group have rallied to attend the EOGMs to stave off an en bloc attempt in your estate. Find those who feel like you - you simply love your home and never want it to be sold off. How you hold yourself in the months of uncertainty when the agents and Sales Committee try every trick in the book to garner 80% support is important. Don't be defensive - this is your home! Behave with dignity and know you have every right to fight back to save your home! There are a growing number of Stayers who are not accepting en bloc as inevitable. Good luck and follow this guide if it helps!

1. Be factual, and do not get personal. Come across as professional and objective.
    
2. Understand the new law and what is required to be done, so that you can get at the pro enblocers when they try and short change the process.
    
3. The core group must be of one mind, and agree on the principles and game plan. You need at least 10 people to get things done, and not feel overwhelmed by the task ahead. Also, more people means more moral support when someone is feeling depressed over the issue of losing one's home.
    
4. Spread out the work load. Better still if various members have complementary strengths.
    
5. Get the media involved. TV, newspapers, write to Forum Page.
    
6. Go and see the Law Minister.
    
7. Block them at EVERY STEP of the way. Send mailers, talk to residents. Have a blogsite.
    
8. Spend some money and get a lawyer's letter sent if the situation requires it, so that the CSC, MA, MC, cannot ignore you. Nothing like a legal letter to put enblocers on their best behaviour.
    
9. Query every step of the way - we queried over the validity of the EOGM requisition signatures (someone actually made photocopies of the requistion and went through every signature and spotted 12 inconsistent signatures of the same person etc). If you can catch them on such grounds, report them for fraud.
    
10. Hard leg work is needed involving cold calling on the phone and knocking on doors to seek your needed 21% support base. Get a copy of the Strata Title Roll from the MC. You are entitled to it. Have a mailing list even to those who don't live in your condo. You will be surprised by how many who live outside will support you.
     
11. Don't come across as pushy and not giving respect to other people's opinions (ie those who want en bloc). So always put it in such a way in your circulars that 'this is our opinion' and not come across as high and mighty. Also try to find out who's hard core en bloc and try and not cross their path!
     
12. Produce mailers and en bloc flowcharts to show to everyone (including the pros) that you want everyone to be enlightened so that no one gets hoodwinked by an overzealous Agent or Sales Committee. Come across as fair and professional, and not narrow minded, even though you know that you and your neighbours are better off not selling en bloc.
     
13. If you have a certain 21%, call your own EOGM to STOP THE ENBLOC.