The 1,600-unit People’s Housing Project (PPR) Sri Aman is meant to house the residents of Jinjang Utara longhouses in Kepong, but until now several original tenants are still waiting for the affordable houses promised by Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL).
Selangor and Federal Territories Community Association (Permas) President M. Arumugam alleged that city hall has unfairly distributed the units at PPR Sri Aman. This is because while most of the 900 families at the Jinjang Utara longhouses were able to relocate there since August 2017, a few households were left behind, including original tenants issued with yellow cards.
“It was agreed between DBKL and the residents that the original tenants will be offered to buy a unit in PPR Sri Aman for RM35,000 each, while those living with them will be offered to rent a PPR unit in Sri Aman or nearby.”
“But now, there are cases of the original tenants not being offered the units. I estimate between 30 and 50 yellow card holders have not received their offer letters. Strangely, DBKL offered units to some of the blue and green card holders (next-of-kin or those registered as co-occupants) and also to those who rented units from the original tenants.”
Residents of the Jinjang Utara longhouses are former squatters from various parts of the capital. In the early 1990s, they were relocated into the longhouses, which were supposed to serve as interim homes for up to five years only. While most residents were able to move out from there since August 2017, some were left to live in deplorable conditions.
“The area is like a rubbish dump, with rubble and overgrown shrubs. The vacant units are a hotspot for drug addicts which makes the area more dangerous, especially now that most people have moved out,” noted Arumugam.
In fact, many homes in Jinjang Utara have been burglarized multiple times already, and water pipes have been pilfered by drug addicts. Good thing Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor installed a refillable water tank there.
“The drug addicts are always wandering in this area, waiting for an opportunity to steal something. I have to be at home all the time to safeguard my belongings. I have sent my wife to live with relatives because it is too dangerous to stay here,” said 66-year-old yellow card holder Mohammad Salleh Kassim.
Arumugam argued that all the original settlers at Jinjang Utara longhouses should have been able to move in to PPR Sri Aman as there are about 1,600 units there. DBKL should have given priority to the yellow card holders, before the other card holders.
“The government failed to provide permanent homes in five years as promised, which has led to the situation today. As long as the yellow card holders do not own a house within 35km of the city centre, they should be offered a unit.”
“But sadly, many units have been offered to blue and green card holders, as well as outsiders. I bumped into a PPR Sri Aman resident who did not know where the longhouse is located. Some yellow card holders who already own units in a nearby low-cost flats were also offered the units.”
As such, he has filed a complaint with Malaysia Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) in 2017 to look into the allegedly unfair distribution of homes at PPR Sri Aman.
In a report by The Star last year, Kepong MP Lim Lip Eng verified that outsiders and ineligible individuals were permitted to purchase or rent dwellings at the low-cost housing project.
He alleged that 60 non-qualified individuals succeed in obtaining units after submitting documents from the former Barisan Nasional government. Furthermore, some 56 former longhouse residents were not only allowed to buy a unit, they were also permitted to lease extra units.
According to DBKL Community Development and Urban Wellbeing Department director Anwar Mohd Zain, city hall is looking for feasible solutions to address this issue.
Image source: The Star
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