By Farah Wahida:
The state government of Sabah is doing its best to serve the people, especially in the provision of housing, according to Local Government and Housing Minister Datuk Hajiji Noor.
This is in response to a property valuer’s allegation that constituencies held by the opposition party — three state seats and Kota Kinabalu’s parlimentary seat — could see less progress in the coming years.
“Kota Kinabalu is the state capital and its residents also paid taxes, and whether the opposition won or we (Barisan Nasional) won, we still have to look after it,” he said during the unveiling of Lido Avenue, a 26-storey twin tower block with 228 flats and 15 shop/office units.
Moreover, 2,126 units of strata-titled properties and 2,113 units of landed properties have been approved by the government since 2010. “This is in Kota Kinabalu and Penampang alone … some have been completed and sold and some still undergoing construction,” he explained.
In the next few years, SHAREDA, Syarikat Perumahan Negara, as well as the state’s Housing & Town Development Authority would develop about 15,000 houses, added Hajiji.
Apart from that, he also urged private developers to lower the prices of homes in the state.
“While we agree that we are practising a free enterprise system and that prices are dictated by the market, there is such a thing called corporate responsibility or at least if you do a little bit of charity and do not think too much of profit,” he added.
Farah Wahida, Editor of PropertyGuru, wrote this story. To contact her about this or other stories email farahwahida@propertyguru.com.my
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