The Selangor government has agreed in principle to grant land titles to long-time residents of informal urban settlements situated on state land, said Gombak MP Mohd Azmin Ali.

The details of the proposal is being looked into by the state’s land and district officers who have been asked to report back to Menteri Besar Abdul Khalid Ibrahim with relevant figures, said Azmin.

“We want to see how many (housing) units are involved, and how many years they (the residents) have spent in these villages and (informal housing) areas.

“Only then will a decision be made. In principle, we agree that they (long-time residents) be given priority in the awarding of such lands,” he said.

The PKR vice-president was speaking to reporters after a thanksgiving gathering held in Keramat, Kuala Lumpur.

MB's announcement a surprise

Khalid, who is PKR secretary-general, had raised the ire of several quarters when he announced that the state government would continue with the ‘zero squatters’ policy initiated by the previous government.

khalid ibrahim selangor mb pc 260308 03 Although Khalid said the government would carry out the policy “as humanely as possible”, the announcement came as a surprise and drew criticism from various quarters as PKR was at the forefront of efforts to uphold the rights of, among others, the Kampung Berembang settlement in Jalan Ampang.

Bar Council chairperson Ambiga Sreenevasan had said the policy was “flawed” and described it as an “unmitigated disaster” due to the high-handed manner in which the forced evictions were carried out previously.

“The inhumane treatment and the failure to address the basic housing needs of the poor and marginalised is of great concern,” she said and urged the state government to adopt negotiations and willingness to give urban settlers affordable and decent alternative housing.

“Human rights norms decry forced evictions. They demand instead that no one should be left homeless or vulnerable to human rights violations. It is the responsibility of the state to ensure proper resettlement in such circumstances,” she added.

Community residents' association of Selangor and Federal Territory (Permas) had also expressed disappointment with Khalid’s statement.

Its president Tan Jo Hann said the “general sweeping statements" about squatters were uncalled for.

Azmin said in the case of urban settlements on private land, the state government would urge developers to ‘reasonably’ compensate the residents. They must also ensure that the settlers are provided with alternative affordable housing, he added.

“For private land, we urge the developers to compensate the squatters with a quantum that is reasonable, not just to... give them RM5,000 and tell them, ‘Get out of there.’ We won’t allow that.

“We will call all such developers and give them a stern warning to make sure they give adequate compensation to the squatters before they remove and demolish those houses.

“Secondly, they must also ensure that the low-cost houses are ready before they remove the squatters from their present villages or lands,” he said.

Let them buy now

Azmin also said Khalid had also asked state development corporation PKNS to honour its commitments to long-time tenants of PKNS’ low-cost flats who had entered into rent-to-buy agreements with the corporation but are still paying rent after so many decades.

opposition boycott batu talam election pc 110107 azmin ali “In the Taman Keramat flats, some have been staying there for 37 years (although) the agreement with PKNS was (on a) rent-to-buy (basis). But after 37 years, they are still renting. If they had borrowed from a bank, the loan would have been settled a long time ago.

“Why is PKNS still forcing these people to pay rent and not grant them ownership over the units?” he asked.

In some instances, Azmin added, such residents of low-cost flats were being pressured to vacate their homes in order to make way for a development project.

“I feel this is an injustice to the residents of the said flats. This issue was raised with the menteri besar. He has himself gone to the flats and asked PKNS to submit a comprehensive report (on the issue),” said Azmin.

Azmin also said the problem had been raised with Khalid of landowners who risk losing their property due to the imposition of high premiums.

The Selangor government is looking into the possibilities of reducing such premiums “so as not to burden these people”, said Azmin.

“This is being studied, but in principle, the new administration has agreed to reduce the premiums for those awarded land in Selangor by the previous administration,” he said.