SHAH ALAM, 3 Mar: The decision to raise rental rates from RM124 to RM250 per month for residents of the People’s Housing Programme (PPR) was approved in 2007, before Pakatan Rakyat took over the reins of the Selangor government.
The Exco for Housing, Building Management and Urban Living, Datuk Iskandar Abdul Samad, said that if the rate of rental is maintained at RM124 per month, the state government would have to bear a subsidy of almost RM1 million a year.
He said that the decision to increase the rate was to avoid the Selangor government’s annual allocation deficit
“Not everyone has to pay RM250 a month; only those earning more than RM1,500 will pay this rate.
“In fact, if we look at most of the same PPR houses outside, the rental charges are between RM400 to RM600 a month,” he said.
He said this during a hearing session of the Select Committee on Competency and Accountability (Selcat) at the Annex Hall today.
Iskandar, also the Chempaka Assemblyman, admitted that this problem also happens at other PPRs, but an explanation session is held periodically to inform the residents.
Elaborating, he said that the state government has also allocated RM5 million to repair the PPR in Kota Damansara.
“After the incident of the child’s death there, the state government, in November, allocated RM5 million for repairs.
“We have asked Selangor Property Housing Berhad (PHSB) to carry out maintenance work so that similar incidents do not recur,” he said.
NS
