Next up: Penang Housing Board Bill

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Can we look forward to more affordable housing in Penang?

The Penang Chief Minister has announced a Penang Housing Board Bill – “next State Assembly by Housing Exco Wong Hon Wai,” tweeted Kit Siang last night.

This is a welcome development – though most of the choice land, including reclaimed land, has already been snapped up by private developers.

Last year, The Edge had reported Guan Eng as saying that public housing in Malaysia was stigmatised and conjured images of congestion, crime-prone and low quality housing.

He said there was an absence of competent and professional development in Penang as there has never been proper planning.

“Reaping excessive profits, red tape and over-regulation in the public housing mechanism are among our concerns that we want and need to look at,” Lim said at the opening of the Penang Real Estate conference jointly organised by InvestPenang and the Social Economic and Environmental Research Institute (SERI), sponsored by IJM LAND BERHAD.

“There is a need for a housing board to be free of any excesses to ensure that only quality public housing is in place. The state government is looking at the possibility of forming a body to oversee the implementation of quality public housing.

“If you look at public housing in Singapore and Hong Kong, these are quality homes, unlike what we have here in Malaysia when it comes to low-cost housing. We have been studying various models over the past year and we need some time to study this as it has to be within a legal framework,” he said.

Lim said the state legal officer was “looking into this” and though it was still at a conceptual stage, the state government was hoping to speed things up and it will be on a basis on public/private sector partnership and not totally state government initiated.

What does this public-private partnership entail – government subsidies and cheap land for private developers to build affordable housing?

Kit Siang added in his tweet, “Also bldg Penang Exhibition Centre towards Int City status.”

I am not quite sure if this ‘exhibition centre’ refers to the controversial PICC at Pisa or if this is going to be another centre elsewhere.

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Raj
Raj
20 Oct 2010 2.58pm

Gerakan K – maybe you should ask why your Chief in Penang had been inactive for years. Malunya to wait until now to let another govt do the dirty job It was broken, BN should have fixed it. So why complain?

Winnie
Winnie
20 Oct 2010 5.44pm
Reply to  Raj

The present Penang government is doing something that Gerakan could not do for decades. This is what change is all about. The rakyat truly appreciate the forward thinking govenment. We can learn so much from the expert in singapore in the area of affordable public housing and estate management.

for those who wish to live in a kampung, the option is always there on mainland.

zik
zik
20 Oct 2010 1.31pm

Hahaha Gerakan K

You’re Gerakan member, that why feel like that! Ordinary people like me and many others welcome the move!!

I burdened by previous Gerakan Gov.. but now not anymore!! Cheers!!

looes74
looes74
20 Oct 2010 2.32am

I believe that there are many Penang politicians including the recent town councillors have made beeline to Singapore. One of the pinnacle sucess of Singapore is Public Housing.

Read this

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Housing_and_Development_Board

The issues are funding & right policies in building pubclic housing for the masses

Anil,
To be frank, there is no easy solution to this….Even Singapore government facing problems over the ever rising HDB prices….
However, if PR can use this as one of the manifesto together to equal redistribution of the land. Pakatan Rakyat would do a “PAP” on BN…..Najib might becomes Lim Yew Hock of BN

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lim_Yew_Hock

William Tan
William Tan
20 Oct 2010 10.13am
Reply to  looes74

If we follow Singapore HDB, then Penangites must get used to living in high rise, pay the monthly maintenance fee on time, floor space of 1000 sq ft. In short, they need to practise proper family planning in order for the family to fit in.

This is a way forward. As there can never be houses that is less than RM250K in Penang island for you to be entitled to BN so-called benefits.

looes74
looes74
20 Oct 2010 6.08pm
Reply to  William Tan

William, Since when Penangites ain’t used to live in high rise buildings. Second, there is no such thing as free lunch. Look at most public housing in Malaysia….Because of extremely low maintenance fee, don’t expect to have extremely good living condition. Guys, This Exco for Housing might be having a Bed of Nails from now on. Penang state government gonna make choices for limited funding. Hehehe, the Great Anil would be haranguing to DAP to end the building of PICC. Well, most likely DAP would be using this as prelude to the common Manifesto for Pakatan Rakyat – Federal level.… Read more »

AgreeToDisagree
15 Mar 2012 7.18pm
Reply to  looes74

Oh yes there is a free lunch. Look at the soup kitchens and food aid shelters. Heck every citizen could give ANYONE a free lunch. As the world becomes poorer or more overpopulated, there will be MORE and MORE FREE LUNCHES. Looks like BOTH this @looes74 character/strawman and LKY are both going against reality.

Gerakan K
Gerakan K
20 Oct 2010 1.33am

Another housing board = more rules, regulations and possible contradiction

More rules, punishment, red tape for us, eg water surchage, plastic bags, polystyrene boxes and plates banning, etc.

I’m burdened by this DAP state government.

AgreeToDisagree
21 Oct 2010 12.43am
Reply to  Gerakan K

So long as vested interests or malicious compliance is not going to typify, but we’ll have to see what the board is like first (what kind of fund allotment or an entirely voluntary one that does not take our tax monies to benefit political beneficiaries or retain power), to judge for ourselves :

The Gambier Threat – Mid 2010
http://img825.imageshack.us/img825/1378/gambier1.jpg

Khatijah
Khatijah
23 Oct 2010 3.42pm
Reply to  Gerakan K

BN Housing Minister Chor asked rakyat to take ‘2 Generation Loan’ to buy house. He said expensive never mind, you and your children can take long-term loan across 2 generation.

Is this the best BN can offer to solve rising cost of housing?

Why not suggesting 3-generation loan?
Bank MCA or Gerakan can provide the loan at low interest?

BN is promoting ‘keliling pinggan’.