Penang Island City Council (MBPP) president Patahiyah Ismail has dismissed as “false” the report in Bernama yesterday that Kampung Selut - another Malay village in Penang - will soon disappear to pave the way for redevelopment.

“We strongly deny that there is such an incident because MBPP has no plans to redevelop Kampung Selut,” Patahiyah said at a press conference in Komtar today.

“The village was part of a slump clearance programme in 1963-1968, and we have never approved any development on the land,” she added.

Patahiyah has instructed her staff to lodge a police report on the “false news”. Also present was Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng.

She said there are 211 residential homes on the land, of which 109 are single homes on 99-year leasehold.

There are 102 terrace houses which are rented out to families whose houses had been demolished by the council during development work in the past, she added.

“The houses are rented out for RM70 per month and we have not increased the rental since 2011,” she said.

Patahiyah said the only activity in the village was a survey carried out by MBPP in collaboration with the Penang Women’s Development Corporation (PWDC) to obtain feedback from the community in Kampung Selut on how to improve their living conditions.

This survey is part of PWDC’s Gender Responsive Budgeting project being carried out in various locations on the island and mainland.

“In the survey, we ask the villagers about their living conditions and how we can help improve. Most of them say they are quite satisfied with their surroundings,” Patahiyah said.

She also refuted allegations that MBPP was merely a trustee of the Kampung Selut land, which, according to Sungai Pinang Village Mosque chairperson Ibrahim Din, beonged to an individual and federal government.

“MBPP is the owner of the land and we have not approved any plans for development there,” she said.

According to Bernama , the village had existed since the 1960s and has 5,000 residents.

The report quoted Ibrahim as claiming that the landowner agreed to turn the land into a Malay reserve and the Penang Municipal Council (MPPP) at that time was appointed as the trustee of the land.

“Ibrahim, who stays in Kampung Selut, said the residents had contacted MBPP several times to buy the houses from the local authorities but failed because they refused to sell them,” Bernama reported.