COMMENT | Kg Papan issue: Dear PM, silence amounts to complicity

COMMENT | Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, I write to you with deep concern and an even deeper sense of duty because the situation in Kampung Papan in Pandamaran, Klang, has reached a point where silence amounts to complicity.

I have been involved in negotiations on this issue for more than a decade, from discussions with the then-menteri besar Khalid Ibrahim to more recent engagements with Menteri Besar Amirudin Shari.

At every stage, the state government agreed that the urban settlers of Kampung Papan were entitled to purchase double-storey terrace homes valued at RM99,000 each, an agreement that was clearly documented, signed, and repeatedly affirmed.

These records exist, and they tell a simple truth: the residents are not squatters; they are beneficiaries of a commitment made by the Selangor state.

Yet today, these same residents are being dragged through a system that has turned its back on them.

The developer took impoverished families to court, and the High Court ruled that they are “squatters” on land the state itself had promised them.

To make matters worse, almost a full year after the oral judgment, there are still no grounds of judgment. Without it, the residents cannot proceed with the appeal, cannot seek justice, cannot move forward. Absence of grounds of judgment is not a procedural delay but is the denial of a constitutional right.

The situation on the ground has descended into shocking and unnecessary brutality.

In the last few days alone, we have seen a growing pattern of aggressive and violent arrests.

One video shows a grown man being dragged away while his shorts have dropped to his ankles, and even that humiliating, vulnerable state did not temper the police response.

Activists standing with the community have been arrested. Journalists documenting the truth have been arrested.

The message sent is clear, and it is chilling: speak up, and you will be silenced.

‘Please intervene’

Datuk Seri, this entire episode stands in stark contradiction to the spirit of Malaysia Madani. Compassion, dignity, accountability: these principles are not optional rhetoric; they are supposed to be the backbone of this government.

What is happening in Kampung Papan undermines not only public trust but also the moral standing of the administration you lead.

Pakatan Harapan was elected on the promise of justice, transparency, and reform. Allowing this crisis to fester and allowing ordinary people to be humiliated, criminalised, and cast aside erodes the credibility of your leadership.

I urge you, respectfully but firmly, to intervene.

Direct the Selangor state government to honour its long-standing commitment to provide these families with the homes they were promised.

And most importantly, put an end to the aggressive policing that has transformed a housing dispute into a spectacle of fear.

This is not merely a Selangor issue. It is a test of what kind of nation we are becoming. And it is a moment where your leadership can restore faith or erode it beyond repair.

Sincerely,

Charles Santiago

CHARLES SANTIAGO is a former Klang MP.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.

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