CF relief after a decade wait

CF relief after a decade wait

By PRIYA MENON
priya@thestar.com.my
Photo by KAMARUL ARIFFIN

FINALLY after waiting for 10 years, buyers of low-cost flats in Taman Ukay Indah Sungai Sering, Ampang, received their certificate of fitness (CF) recently.

They were issued the CF at the Ampang Jaya Municipal Council (MPAJ) hall in Taman Keramat by Selangor Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim.

The project to build two blocks of 15-storey flats on 2.2ha of former forest reserve land was launched to relocate squatters in Hulu Kelang.

Happy owners: Khalid looking at grant document for Taman Ukay Indah Sungai Sering after giving away the grants.

The state executive council had granted the application to change the land to residential for the squatters relocation project in 2000.

The project was scheduled to be completed by 2006 but due to financial and technical difficulties it could only be completed at the beginning of 2011.

However, the certificate of fitness could not be issued earlier due to the lack of the Integrated Water Supply System (IWSS) by Syabas. To ensure the problem was resolved the Selangor government had agreed to pay RM2.5mil to ensure the system could be installed to supply water to all 660 flats.

Selangor Housing and Land Board executive director Datin Paduka Alinah Ahmad said MPAJ also had to fork out an additional RM16mil for the rent of the 270 squatters due to the delay in the project.

“Each home was given RM400 rent from 2006 to 2012,” he said.

Khalid said so far they had managed to help about 10,000 buyers of abandoned projects,

“So far they have managed to revive the abandoned projects in Bukit Botak and Puncak Perdana,” he said.

He added that local councils had to monitor the project from the beginning to ensure the water supply problem did not crop up at the last moment.

Khalid said the state government was looking at reviving all abandoned projects and ensure that no future developments faced the same problem.

“We believe that prevention is better so I have asked the planning department to be more vigilant to ensure the problems do not recur. We also have to reduce the privatisation of government land because of such problems,” he added.

Khalid also said there were many other projects that were being handled by State Housing, Building Maintenance and Squatters Committee chairman Iskandar Abdul Samad, including the infamous Kampung Berembang.

House buyer Mohmad Fadzil Mat Yamin, 70, was elated to finally be able to move into his home soon. He was afraid that they would not be able to see the project completed.

“Many house buyers have died before they could move in their own home. My wife and I are glad after all these years we are still around to see our home,” he added.