LETTER | The controversial development project at Taman Rimba Kiara could prove to be the Achilles’ heel for the new Federal Territories Minister.

He had stated that the project cannot be cancelled but could be scaled down and he is still open to any solution that takes into account the interest of all parties. And that is his current position. He added, “(If you) come up with a solution which takes into account the interest of all parties, of course, I can consider” and acknowledged that the developer has the legal right to continue with the project and will have to follow the rule of law.

It is commendable that he will take into account the interest of all parties. A joint working committee (JWC) has been formed to solve this issue. He wants parties to be willing to compromise since Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) would have to pay about RM155 million for what the developer spent if the project is cancelled.

But said the final sum could be higher if the developer claims for interest and loss of profits. For information, the minister is also the chairperson of Yayasan Wilayah Persekutuan (YWP), the owner of the land to be developed.

Separately, the courts have just decided that the Development Order (DO) held by the developer is legal and legitimate.

With due respect to the courts and the learned judge, the issue here is the park's actual boundaries coupled with the land transfer issue i.e. a conflict of interest which happened before the issuance of the DO. We do understand that in a courtroom there could be evidence that may or may not be included and the laws are interpreted and applied by judges.

I will not attempt to go into details since Taman Tun Dr Ismail residents are making an appeal on this decision. A point to note here is that there have been four reports lodged with MACC on this matter since July 2017 and surprisingly, there have been no updates from them.

On the point of rule of law, I am perplexed when the minister suggested scaling down the project even before the courts have made a final decision and pending the four reports made to the MACC. And also this is made even before the joint working committee sits.

How could parties come with an open mind to discuss when the minister himself has in advance unilaterally offered a solution that has an element of a biased outcome towards the developer? By convention, he should be the mediator.

Another point that seems to be very inconsistent is the amount that DBKL would have to pay the developer if the project is cancelled. It started with about RM110 million to RM155 million and if the developer claims for interest and loss of profits, it ranges from RM200 to RM500 million. According to sources, the developer had paid only RM115 million mainly for the land premium, development charges to DBKL and joint venture payments.

The question now is why should the developer be paid for loss of profit and interest costs when the developer had not even gotten a sales permit, to begin with?

Is this a claim put forward by the developer or just a figure to scare the public that DBKL will be using so much of taxpayer's money if this project is cancelled? If it is the former, the developer should know the process better and would not have put up the claim. Therefore, this is irrelevant.

Further, according to Bank Negara, the housing glut in Malaysia is worsening as more units remain unsold, with 80 percent of these priced above RM250,000.

And also, paying the developer RM115 million is actually a refund of money paid earlier to DBKL and YWP and not the coughing up “new” money.

Yes, it is an insult to a Federal Territory to have families living in longhouses for such a long period but there was a promise made by the government to give them proper housing.

If the present government has no funds, why not do a crowd-funding effort not to buy the land but to raise funds to build houses for the longhouse people? Anyway, the land belongs to YWP.

I am very sure Vincent Tan, Ananda Krishnan, G Gnanalingam and many other Tan Sris’ would be willing to offer a helping hand.

There were also other proposals put forward to the minister at a town hall meeting on Nov 23 with TTDI residents. Those should be considered too.

I also recall that some time ago, the Sultan of Perak criticised private housing developers who reaped huge profits by building luxury homes instead of more affordable houses for the people.

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