KUALA LUMPUR: The family members of developers of abandoned housing projects may be barred from leaving the country in the near future, says Housing and Local Government Minister Nga Kor Ming.
He said it is one of the proposed amendments to the Housing Development (Control and Licensing) Act 1966 (Act 11), which would be tabled in Parliament next year.
“I’m not going only to blacklist the developers, but also their family members so that they are honest to house buyers,” said Nga during a press conference after a media engagement session on Budget 2025 at a hotel in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday (Oct 24).
Nga also said Putrajaya would not limit anyone from buying houses for investments, as doing so could cause the collapse of the real estate sector and potentially affect about 200 related industries.
“If the real estate market collapses, imagine the catastrophe that could affect the country,” said Nga.
Nga was responding to former Umno leaders Khairy Jamaluddin and Shahril Hamdan, who remarked in their Keluar Sekejap podcast earlier this month that the government should limit houses bought for investments to address a shortage of affordable housing.
Khairy and Shahril said 60% of unsold homes are high-end properties that are too expensive for most people.
Meanwhile, Nga said Malaysia is on the right track in terms of house ownership, as 76.9% of Malaysians own a house.
“My dream is 100% so that everyone owns a home. Owning a home gives a sense of security and reflects the quality of life,” said Nga.
Nga also said there are enough mechanisms to prevent people from speculating on house prices.
In the earlier engagement session, Nga said Budget 2025 had also included an allocation of RM54.4mil in 22 projects to upgrade or construct markets across all localities in the country.
Nga said the government and the Malaysia Institute of Architects would hold a competition for market designs soon.
“In 20 years, we hope these markets can be developed as tourist destinations. I welcome all Malaysian and international architects to participate in this competition,” said Nga.
Nga also said his ministry had seen an increase of 5.08% or RM287.4mil in its Budget 2025 allocations this year, which was RM5.934 compared to last year’s RM5.647bil.
He added that 66% of the Housing and Local Government Ministry allocations would be used for development expenses while 34% would be used for operational costs.
Nga said his ministry’s plans for next year include developing smart cities, providing tax reliefs for purchasing food waste compost machines, improving the welfare of the Malaysian Fire and Rescue Department, and upgrading drains.
He said that RM200mil has been allocated to upgrade drains and flood hotspots across the country.
“The ministry will use RM1509mil from this amount in the coming two months to reduce flood risk ahead of the annual monsoon season at the end of the year,” added Nga.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim tabled Budget 2025 on October 18. It is currently being debated at the Policy stage in Parliament.
