GEORGE TOWN – Penang is stepping into the dispute between 340 families in Kg Sg Dua and Putrajaya’s Land and Mines Department over eviction notices served to the residents.
They were told to evict their houses in Batu Uban to make way for a new state police headquarters complex.
Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow has directed the department and the George Town district land office to meet Monday over the issue.
Under the current planning guidelines, any developer of public or private projects must resolve resettlement issues before earthwork can commence, he said in a statement.
“The Land and Mines Department has to comply with this requirement before eviction can take place, and at this juncture, they must prove that they have resolved the relocation issue.”
He said on Monday, the state will not hesitate to direct the department to halt eviction, pending the relocation of existing houses and places of worship belonging to the affected residents.
The families have been ordered to vacate their homes by March 14, according to Batu Uban assemblyman A. Kumaresan.
The eviction notice was also issued to other premises, including four places of worship.
Kumaresan has raised his concerns over the fate of the residents as well as the religious premises.
He said the matter has been unresolved since 2007, and some of the residents received an ex-gratia payment of RM27,200 to move out while others did not take it in hopes of better compensation, such as affordable housing.
Earlier, Chow and state exco Jagdeep Singh Deo presided over the handover of a RM50,000 cheque to the caretakers of St George’s Anglican Church on Farquhar Street.
The sum is from the state’s non-Islamic religious premises fund, of which since 2016, Penang has allocated RM7.3 million to aid with small repairs.
The state has received 89 applications from churches and Buddhist, Hindu and Sikh temples to fund repairs to their buildings. – The Vibes, February 20, 2021
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