EIGHT Taman Manggis PPR flat tenants who have been evicted are expected to file suit against the state government this week.

Their lawyer Khairul Azam Abdul Aziz, who is working pro bono on the case, said he was preparing the draft of the summonses against the state housing department and state government.

“It will be subject to my clients’ approval. In a day or two, I expect we can file the suit over the wrongful evictions at court,” he said.

Khairul said his clients would seek compensation over the allegedly wrongful evictions and other damages.

Last week, he said the eviction was illegal because there was no court order, which was against Section 7(2) of the Specific Relief Act 1950 and Article 13 of the Federal Constitution.

Section 7(2) states that property owners cannot repossess their properties that are still occupied by the tenants unless by court proceedings.

However, Section 8(3) of the Specific Relief Act also states that no suit shall be brought against any government in Malaysia under the section that provides for suits by persons dispossessed of immovable property.

Khairul said he would make his arguments in court.

The Penang housing department evicted eight families from the flat last Wednesday, after they were found to have lost their eligibility to stay at the PPR flats. 

The eight are among 22 families that have been told to move out. Several notices had been issued to them since October.

Since the eviction, seven families have camped outside Komtar, where the state government offices are located, to protest the eviction.

Sofian Mohd Zain, a local NGO representative supporting the evicted tenants, acknowledged that PPR units were transitional and not permanent homes.

But he said the state government should not evict the tenants without offering them a solution to their housing problem.

Without a solution, the Penang Surplus Welfare Association chairman said the tenants would continue to stay and protest at Komtar.

“A solution that will help them is a rent-to-own scheme for low-cost housing units.

“The state knows too well that these people cannot get bank loans to buy a low-cost unit. A rent-to-own scheme is the way,” he told reporters.

Sofian insisted it was wrong of the state to just evict them and not provide them with a permanent solution.

He noted the earlier offer for the evicted tenants to stay at a hotel operated by the Penang Islamic Council.

“The MAINPP hotel was offered. One room for one family. But how long can they stay there? Where would they put their belongings?

“They have to be able to live normally as a family. They are not going on some holiday. So where can they go? 

“They may be able to put up temporarily at their relatives, friends or neighbours’ to bathe and change, or stay a while. Some of the schoolgoing kids are doing that so they can go to school, but they can’t study properly.”

Sofian also dismissed allegations that some quarters had been “inciting” the tenants to protest and make the Penang government look bad.

“What’s in it for me to incite them? The state should point out who are the people inciting the tenants.

“The tenants are not children. You can ask them whether the NGOs have been helping them or just inciting them.”

Sofian also said they were not unwilling to talk to the state to discuss a solution, in response to Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow and state housing exco Jagdeep Singh Deo’s recent statement that the state was open to talks.

“We are open too. Our lawyer is also willing to talk, but who has the state sent to invite us to talk?

“Jagdeep himself has not come to discuss with us. Other excos have come to see us, like Dr Afif Bahardin and (Abdul) Halim (Hussain), even though they are not in charge of housing.” – March 11, 2019.