“A new property czar is in the making.”

– P Gunasegaram, Malaysiakini columnist

COMMENT | What rational people should keep in mind when it comes to this Urban Renewal Bill is that Madani does not need it if the government really wants to help the urban disenfranchised, which seems to be the main talking point of this bill.

If the prime minister can announce RM200 million aid for Gaza with nary a whimper from his cabinet or the opposition, if the prime minister can put together a RM4 billion Kota Madani project which involved the political class, bureaucrats and plutocrats, do you really believe that his government needs the Urban Renewal Act (URA), to rejuvenate, regenerate and revitalise urban buildings for the betterment of the rakyat?

Unlike Perikatan Nasional and Umno, if Madani really wanted to expand the cash and political will to help the urban disenfranchised, they have within their ranks the intellectual capability and fiscal savvy to carry out an urban revitalising programme, using federal and local power.

This project will not be about displacing people but rather rebuilding, if needed, repairing and recalibrating civil services for the disenfranchised rakyat. The PM can name it the Rumah Madani initiative or something.

Of course, the people who are capable of this are...