DBKL Housing Enforcement Inspectorate officer Hassan Kassim knocking out the door knob at one of the units at Kerinchi Lembah Pantai PPR to reclaim units with illegal tenants or tenants who have defaulted. — Photos: HAZIM FAUZI/The Star
SUBSIDISED public housing is a privilege and there are 60,000 people in Kuala Lumpur waiting in line for a chance to obtain affordable accommodation.
This is why Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) is intensifying efforts to identify and take action against applicants found misusing people’s housing project (PPR) and public housing (PPA) units.
DBKL Socio-Economic Development executive director Datuk Ibrahim Yusoff said they will no longer compromise with offenders who take the PPR and PPA privilege for granted.
“The government is offering these units to help those from the lower-income group but there are some who do not appreciate this,” said Ibrahim, adding they aim to weed out all wrong-doers by year-end.
“Surveys have been done on suspected offenders since last year and raids will be conducted every week,” he added.
Ibrahim singled out tenants who exploit these government assets by renting their units for amounts which are three or four-fold higher.
“These offenders prevent other deserving cases from getting a place in PPR and PPA.
“Some tenants rent the units for RM120 but sublet them for RM500 to RM600.
“This is unfair to applicants who have been waiting for up to 15 years for a unit.
“Many of them are deserving cases such as squatters or those who lost their homes in a flood or fire,” he told StarMetro during an interview at Menara DBKL 3, Kuala Lumpur.
Currently, 60,000 applications have been put on hold due to the lack of PPR and PPA units.
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