'Homeless’ disabled man to get free flat

G Vinod

| June 16, 2011

Selangor exco Iskandar Abdul Samad says that the state government will take over the low-cost flats project and promised to subsidise rental.

PETALING JAYA: A disabled man whose longhouse unit at PJS1 was demolished by developer Peter Brickworks Sdn Bhd will receive a flat unit at the nearby low-cost housing area at no cost.

Selangor exco Iskandar Abdul Samad made this promise to 56-year-old V Mahalingam and his wife S Tamilchelvi, who is partially blind, when he visited them at their makeshift tent erected at the site where their home once stood.

On June 3, two longhouse residents at PJS1, Mahalingam and A Pushparani had their homes demolished by the developer after obtaining a court order in May.

This came despite the developer’s assurance a week earlier that it would not evict the residents from the longhouses pending negotiations.

Angered by the developer’s action, Selangor Menteri Besar Abdul Khalid Ibrahim instructed state secretary Khusrin Munawi to acquire three plots of land belonging to Peter Brickworks in the same week.

In a meeting with residents today, Iskandar also said that Mahalingam would receive a unit at the ground floor of the building for his convenience.

“The flats will be ready within a week pending some cleaning up work,” said Iskandar who was flanked by fellow exco Dr Xavier Jeyakumar.

Also present at the meeting were Petaling Jaya City Hall (MBPJ) councillor Latheefa Koya, Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) treasurer A Sivarajan and residents action committee chairman M Sugumaran.

Rental will be subsidised As for Pushparani and the remaining 276 buyers affected by the low-cost flat project delay, the state government agreed to subsidise RM500 monthly in rental for the next three years pending completion of the flats.

The 276 buyers, who were formerly residents of Kampung Petaling Tin, Kampung Pinang and Kampung Muniandy, were moved from their squatter areas in 2003 after being promised low-cost flats.

While 27 families were moved to the longhouses at PJS1, the rest were moved to the low-cost flats at Lembah Subang and other areas as a transit point.

The residents, however, felt shortchanged when Peter Brickworks failed to build their low-cost flats which was slated near Taman Kanagapuram, citing an injunction obtained by the residents there.

During a press conference later, Iskandar said that the state government would take over the project to build the low-cost flats for the residents.

He also said that the flats would be built at the site where the remaining longhouses still stood, a land that currently belongs to the Education Ministry.

“The state government will acquire the land as the school project is stalled. Once we get the land, we will start building the flats there,” he added.

Iskandar said that the project would not affect the longhouses as the residents could continue living in their homes until the flats are completed.

“Once the building of the flats is completed, the longhouse residents and the remaining buyers can move in,” he added.

In case the Education Ministry planned to resume the school project, Iskandar said the state government would recommend to the federal government to build the school on the land previously slated for the stalled low-cost flats project.

“We hope that the residents there will not object to a school being built as it will benefit the community,” he said.