THE number of stalled and abandoned private housing projects is expected to increase due to the effects of the Movement Control Order (MCO) which saw development projects halted to curb the spread of Covid-19.

Deputy Local Government Development Minister Akmal Nasrullah Mohd Nasir said the task force for stalled and abandoned private housing projects has identified 545 stalled projects and 112 abandoned projects as of March 31.

“The task force evaluates the number of projects on a monthly basis because the status of a project changes dramatically, from a healthy state in one month to stalled in the next month.

“We were given the picture in the last meeting that there could be further increase, but I have not announced the statistics yet,” he told reporters when visiting two stalled private development projects in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.

He said the main focus of the task force is to reduce the number of stalled projects by helping to find solutions to ensure developers fulfil their responsibilities to complete their developments.

“There are several aspects that we look for including the developer’s ability to complete the project, the problems faced and how the task force would try to facilitate the process,” he said.

He said the task force would also make a projections of projects that would be problematic in the future and take into consideration various proposals for improvement including amending Act 118 (Housing Development (Control and Licensing) Act 1966). 

Earlier, Akmal Nasrullah conducted a survey to review the latest status of Residensi Hektar Gombak And Mulberi Condominium which are stalled projects as the developer has been faced with technical as well financial constraints following the increase in the cost of building materials after the MCO.

The Mulberi Condominium should have been completed  in 2016. he said the developer has given its commitment to see the project through and most of the physical development was already completed.

“There are only a few matters still outstanding involving several agencies and we are confident that the certificate of completion and compliance (CCC) will be issued this year, “ he added. – Bernama, May 30, 2023.