SIBU, Sept 17: People’s Housing Project (PPR) developers who fail to complete their projects on time and do not follow project specifications will face prompt action.
Speaking at a press conference after officiating at a ground-breaking ceremony for Seduan PPR in Sibu Jaya today, Housing and Local Government Minister Zuraida Kamaruddin said that the ministry had to be more stern now as it did not want more of such projects facing problems due to the fault of the contractors.
She made these comments following the release of an audit report presented in Parliament which revealed that several PPR since 2013 which were not completed according to schedule and also with defects as contractors involved did not follow specifications.
“This is very sad as the government is incurring losses. From now on we are going to be very strict with the developers,” she said.
Zuraida added that the moment the developers fail to complete the project on time, immediate action would be taken against them.
“If the defect is a minor one that is understandable but not one that is ‘keterlaluan’ (serious) as it will pose a huge loss to the government. If we don’t take prompt action, the project would be left unattended and be subject to vandalism,” she said.
Zuraida said a special monitoring committee for projects nationwide had been formed which is headed by the deputy secretary-general of her ministry.
The committee would hold meetings twice a month and had to report to the ministry on the progress of these projects.
Citing PPR Seduan as an example, she also wanted an association committee to be set up where its job would be to ensure proper management of the site once the houses are handed over to the owners.
“The committee would ensure better security, and cleanliness, promote urban farming and organise fire preventive courses. This is because we want sustainability of the project,” she said.
Zuraida revealed that Seduan PPR is the first such project she had launched during this Covid-19 pandemic period.
“I hope this one will be the model for other PPR in the country with good management,” she added.
The Seduan PPR project comprises 461 single-storey terrace units. Work started on October 23, 2019 and it is now 7 per cent completed. Covering an area of 45 acres, it is scheduled for completion in 40 months’ time.
Zuraida revealed unit price would be decided by the association committee. Normally a PPR unit is priced between RM30,000 to RM42,000.
The government however is subsiding RM190,000 per unit, she said. — DayakDaily
