KUALA LUMPUR – The Kg Sg Baru Terrace Homes and Flat Owners Action Committee have once again urged Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to give residents more time before they are evicted from their homes to make way for a multi-billion ringgit private redevelopment project.
In a letter sighted by Scoop, the committee referred to the eviction notice they received from the Kuala Lumpur Land Administrator earlier today, which said residents must vacate their homes by October 19.
Failure to do so could result in a maximum fine of RM500,000 or imprisonment for up to five years as landowners were found to have been illegally residing on government land, according to the notice.
“Our homes were seized and the red (eviction) notice was pasted at the front of our house, as if we’re squatters encroaching on government land.
“In reality, we are legitimate owners of our land. We have our land grant and we pay land as well as house assessment taxes,” the committee said in the letter addressed to Anwar.
Appealing for the eviction deadline to be postponed until December 31, the committee said residents need time to pack up their belongings as many of them have lived in their homes for more than 50 years.
“We hope that (Anwar) will be able to help us (as) we have long been bullied by elites greedily attempting to make profits without considering the fate of those below them who are the original landowners.
“We are confident that only the Madani government under (Anwar) can guarantee justice and defend those of us who have been wronged. To God we surrender,” the committee said.
Previously, Scoop reported that today’s two-week red notice appears to contradict a directive from Anwar to postpone the eviction date to October 31, as conveyed to Scoop through the prime minister’s political secretary Azman Abidin.
Today’s events come after residents yesterday apparently dodged their eviction deadline when they were informed that they have until the end of this month to pack up their lives and move out.
However, there has yet to be an official notice from authorities on the postponement to October 31, a fact which has caused much worry and frustration among residents.
The eviction is in line with the Land Acquisition Act (LAA) 1960, the legislation that the government used to take formal possession of land in the historic Malay enclave in June 2021.
This came after private property developer Ritzy Gloss Sdn Bhd’s application for the LAA was approved by then federal territories minister Tan Sri Annuar Musa under the Perikatan Nasional government.
The use of the LAA has been the target of certain residents’ ire, with some claiming that the interests of private developers have been prioritised over the welfare of citizens.
The compensation offered by developers to landowners is also said to be inadequate, with residents lamenting how they were only offered RM450 per sqft of their land, which is about a 310% difference from the value determined by private valuators.
Landowners also alleged that they have yet to be approached for supposed negotiations between residents and Ritzy Gloss – a meeting that Anwar had promised to hold when he put a halt to the project in January.
The Prime Minister’s Department now oversees federal territory matters. – October 5, 2023