KUALA LUMPUR: A group of MPs have expressed public support for the highly-contested Urban Renewal Act in Parliament on Tuesday (Aug 26).
Led by Azli Yusof, the Shah Alam MP from Pakatan, the group also included Wong Shu Qi, RSN Rayer and Mohd Sany Hamzah.
The MPs gave their full support for the Bill after receiving a rundown of the Bill by PLANMalaysia director-general Datuk Alias Rameli in the Parliament media room.
Azli said concerns over the Bill, particularly claims that it would take away the rights and land of the people and local authorities, were unfounded as the Bill only targets redevelopment of dilapidated and unsafe housing.
"Many housing areas today are run-down, some beyond repair, and some are even very unsafe which is where this Bill comes in.
"It only focuses on these areas so they can be redeveloped under strict conditions to ensure owner land and property rights are preserved," he said at a press conference in Parliament on Tuesday (Aug 26).
He said Clause 24(a) includes a mandatory requirement allowing original owners to live in the same area once it is redeveloped.
This means that once the homes are rebuilt, former resident owners will retain their right to live in the rebuilt homes without eviction or displacement.
"Property owners will retain their rights and ownership of the redeveloped units as well as receive fair compensation.
"The principle will be ‘one-to-one’ compensation, if someone owned one house before then they will receive at least one house after redevelopment—equal to or better than what they had before," Azli said.
He also said the Bill would not affect the status of Malay Reserve land or wakaf land, especially if there is no existing dilapidated housing on the land.
"If the redevelopment involves Malay Reserve land, it will remain Malay Reserve land. If it involves wakaf, that status will also remain unchanged especially since wakaf land is usually vacant.
"The redevelopment is specifically aimed at replacing old or unsafe housing areas," he added.
On possible demographic change concerns that violate state government demographic requirements, he said the Bill would not have the power to change this requirement as any redevelopment needs to align with state policies and obtain state approval.
This comes after Housing and Local Government Minister Nga Kor Ming tabled the Urban Renewal Bill for its first reading at the Dewan Rakyat on Thursday (Aug 21).
The Bill’s second reading is currently scheduled for this Wednesday (Aug 27).
