THE Penang government today urged Putrajaya to speed up its review of existing laws that are stalling redevelopment of old housing projects.

State housing exco Jagdeep Singh Deo said the National Land Council (NLC) is looking into the legal issues preventing Penang from tearing down blocks of old flats.

He added the existing laws are inconsistent and unclear.

While the Strata Titles Act requires 100% consent from residents to allow regeneration projects to take place at their flats, another law allows compulsory acquisition.

“There have been several forums with the ministry on this issue, with the last in February. We are told the matter is now with NLC.

“We hope the matter will be resolved soon, either by amending existing laws or enacting new ones to deal with urban renewal.”

Jagdeep was responding to a Berita Harian report that the low-cost Padang Tembak flats in Air Itam were old and too cramped to live in.

He said the state formed an urban regeneration committee in 2015, adding that the federal government followed suit with a similar committee in 2017.

The Padang Tembak flats with 3,000 units, Jagdeep said, were among five projects identified for urban renewal.

The other four projects are the five-point block Mahsuri flats in Bayan Baru, Taman Free School flats, Mak Mandin flats in Butterworth, and Taman Siakap flats in Seberang Jaya. There are 5,469 units in total.

He said the residents will have to move out so the flats can be demolished to make way for new ones.

“If there is nearby land available, the government will build temporary housing for the residents.

“If there are none, the state will subsidise rent these residents will pay to live elsewhere until their new homes are ready.”

Jagdeep said the redevelopment, which will see more units, will give the people better and more affordable housing as well as the state more revenue.

“The issue is we need consent from all the residents. Some other jurisdictions (countries) only require consent from the majority, like in Singapore.

“We need the federal government to look at our legal position. We look forward to positive news from Putrajaya.”

Earlier this month, Federal Territories Minister Khalid Samad told Dewan Rakyat that the government would introduce a bill in urban regeneration. – April 25, 2019