KL villagers told to move out

The whole of Kampung Puah Seberang will eventually be relocated as the ROL project progresses.

TWO villages in Kuala Lumpur will have to make way for development and relocation is imminent for the residents, Kuala Lumpur mayor Datuk Seri Ahmad Phesal Talib said.

About 120 families in Kampung Wirajaya, Setapak, and nine families in Kampung Puah Seberang, Sentul, will be affected in the exercise that is set to take place by the end of this year.

Residents in both villages had received many eviction notices from Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) over the years but they have fought to stay on the land they call home for decades.

Ahmad Phesal said relocating the residents was the biggest challenge in DBKL’s quest for “zero squatters”.

“Moving into a new house will be difficult at first but it has to be done sooner or later. We only want to give the people a better living environment.

“The only public housing with a lot of vacancies is PPR Pinggiran Bukit Jalil, but many are reluctant to move there because of the distance. I am not denying that it will be difficult and their reasons for refusing to move — such as school and work — are valid.

“However, adjustments should be made for a better future,” he said.

Tok Besi metal factory owner Ramli has no clue what he would do to make ends meet once he is asked to leave.

“I have even offered a surety letter to those who agree to shift to PPR Pinggiran Bukit Jalil, which will give them priority to shift back to any PPR built close to their original location, but they are still reluctant.”

Kampung Wirajaya village head Nasaruddin Sansudin said part of the village was being acquired for the extension of Jalan Tumbuhan, the building of affordable houses and people’s housing units.

“About 52 houses are affected and eviction notices were first issued by DBKL in 2009. The villagers brought the issue to court but lost the case last year.

“DBKL has the right to proceed with the project but the villagers are still negotiating various aspects, including relocation and compensation details.

“DBKL has proposed building a longhouse at the site but the affected villagers are not too keen as the developer has offered us temporary accommodation in vacant condominium units nearby during the construction period,” he said, adding that he had forwarded the proposal to DBKL last month

Squatters in Kampung Puah Seberang were offered flats in Sentul Murni (seen in the background) to move into, but were short changed by their own village committee members.

“The developer met with the villagers and suggested that if they could acquire the whole village, comprising about 80 houses, he would allow the residents to stay in one of their properties nearby and relocate them back to their intended housing once completed. We are happy with this arrangement but we are still waiting for a reply from DBKL.

“It is a win-win situation, as DBKL will no longer have to deal with the remaining squatters in Kampung Wirajaya,” he said, adding that the village was established in 1973.

Ahmad Phesal said the reason they decided to build a longhouse was because it was impossible to house all 120 families from Kampung Wirajaya in nearby public housing units.

“The number is too big and we have to be fair to all the families.

“We offered them a unit each in PPR Pinggiran Bukit Jalil but they refused. So, we gave them the option of living in a longhouse instead,” he said.

Ahmad Phesal had said in a report in StarMetro on Jan 9 that the village was part of the 1Malaysia Housing Programme and a total of RM115mil would be used to build affordable houses, with DBKL buying back low-cost units from the private developer to be sold to eligible residents via a self-financing scheme.

Meanwhile, nine families would be asked to moved out of Kampung Puah Seberang, a village along the Gombak River, after Hari Raya to facilitate the River of Life (ROL) project.

A resident, who did not want to be named, said this was just the first phase and the whole village would eventually be asked to leave.

“I am just waiting for my turn,” he said.

The petty trader said they had been asked to relocate to nearby Kampung Batu Muda Tambahan and public housing units in Sentul Murni since 1985 but the previous village committee had made unilateral decicions.

“The past committee members had their own agenda that we were unaware of, and now we are the losers. We do not want to move to PPR Pinggiran Bukit Jalil, so DBKL has offered the affected families PPR units in Taman Wahyu, Kepong, but it is still too far from our current homes.

“We will just have to go wherever we are sent to,” he said.

“We were supposed to be gazetted as a heritage village and now, because of the ROL project, we have been asked to leave. We are powerless in this situation,” he added.

Some of the workshops in the area were also asked to leave.

Tok Besi metal factory owner Ramli Mahad, 48, said his nightmare began in 1992 when the first eviction notice was issued.

“DBKL would paste the notice on my factory gate and scare my workers and customers away.

“Every time it happens, my workers run away thinking that the company might close any time and they would not be paid. My customers lose confidence in my business and avoid my shop.

“Now, the end is finally here. They have asked my family to move into a flat nearby but what about my business?,” Ramli questioned.

“I have been trading here for the last 26 years and I need space to operate. This is my only source of income. I have a wife and four children, aged from six to 15, to feed.

“With DBKL giving just RM1,000 as assistance and RM600 being spent on various deposits, what I am going to do?

“Where am I going to work and how am I going to service the loans I took for my business?”

“I am just trying to make ends meet but the authorities, who encourage entrepreneurship, seem to be the ones pulling me down,” he added.