A LACK of parental guidance, negative peer influence and bad neighbourhoods are among the reasons cited by youngsters living in low-cost housing projects for their involvement in antisocial activities.

They also blame poverty, poor education and a lack of opportunities for their plight.

This vicious cycle, they said, is keeping them rooted to where they are, even as some try hard to escape.

Muhammad Daniesh, 16, from the People’s Housing Project (PPR) in Pantai Dalam, Kuala Lumpur, squarely blames the lack of guidance from parents and friends’ influence as the main reasons teenagers in these housing areas fail to succeed in life.

He told The Malaysian Insight that most parents do not spend enough time with their children as they are either busy at work or looking for additional income to support the family.

In such situations, children spend most of their time outside their homes and are easily influenced by friends.

Daniesh admitted to being in this situation.

“Most parents are working, like mine. Once we finish school and return home, no one is there to look after us. So, we spend our time with friends and just follow what they do.

“Even when our parents are back from work, usually, they’re tired. They have to cook, do housework and need to get ready for work the next day. Some parents also take on part-time jobs to earn extra income.

“Since we have so much free time, we will spend our time with friends, and at times, we even come home after 11pm. Our parents usually don’t question us.

“So, in such cases, who is there to guide us?” he said while lighting up a cigarette with a group of friends in the motorcycle parking compound at his housing block.

Asked if his parents are aware of his smoking habit, he said they do not, adding that other children are into activities that are worse than smoking.

Some youths in the area are into drugs and commit petty crimes to buy drugs, he said.

Friends are important, he said, as some might lead their peers into extreme activities and crimes.

The Malaysian Insight got a glimpse of how rough life can be in PPRs. During the interview with Daniesh, a fight broke out in the background. The chasing and beating, which lasted less than five minutes, was over the theft of a motorcycle wheel.

Bad planning

Alif Haiqal is another PPR resident. According to him, the environment in low-cost housing areas is not conducive for youth trying to have a go at a career or education.

The quality of a neighbourhood and its surroundings plays a factor in determining their future, he said.

He said the concept of PPRs does not help produce great results, and is merely an easy solution for urban poor cases.

Alif highlighted the fact that crime is common in PPRs, which makes them unsafe.

“If you look at the houses in these PPRs, they are about 650 to 700 sq ft. We have six to seven people squatting in a two-room unit. How could one attend school or college and study in a house that is so crowded? For me, it doesn’t help.

“The neighbourhood is not safe. Something keeps happening. Crime, drugs, issues with neighbours… so many other things.

“A neighbourhood needs to be safe, but here, you can’t guarantee that. Why can’t our neighbourhoods and PPRs be like the housing in Singapore?

“I think it is the lack of proper planning by the government.”

A 2018 Unicef report found that education levels among children living in low-cost flats were affected by the lack of a proper space to study, as 81% of the kids studied in the living room, sharing the space with other family members watching television, while 15% did not have a study space at all.

The study, conducted from August 28 to September 30, 2017 in 17 low-cost flats in the capital and Selangor, involved 996 households and 2,142 children as respondents.

Alif said PPR residents are of the same socio-economic background and comfortable with what they have. Many are also happy to look for low-skilled jobs to sustain themselves financially.

“There is nothing pushing them to succeed. They’re happy to get paid RM1,800 to RM2,000 a month.

“Even if they are into small businesses, once they achieve their daily income target, they feel that is enough. Paying a minimum rent and living in the city is all they need,” said the marketing executive.

If given the opportunity, Alif said, he would move away from the PPR because he wants to live in a better environment and neighbourhood, and create a better future for his children later on.

This view is shared by Muhammad Nur Amirul Mukminin, 19.

The GrabFood rider said he would move away from the PPR because he wants better living conditions.

Most youth in PPRs are aimless and lack ambition to succeed, with some even failing to finish their schooling, he said.

This is backed by the Unicef report, which stated that only 8% of household heads had attended either university or college.

“They don’t have a target. They have no proper guidance and are aimless. Some don’t even complete their schooling. That is the reason they’re not succeeding,” said Nur Amirul, who is also active in combat sport Muay Thai.

He said he notices the difference in mindset between youth in his training academy and those in the PPR, and tries to steer away from those living in the flats.

“The youth in my academy have a projection, an aim. The ones here are more interested in other things, like fights, illegal racing, drugs and so on.

“I try to avoid these people.  I don’t want to get involved and spoil my life. So, sometimes, I just sleep in my gym.” – January 16, 2020.