GEORGE TOWN – Penang will receive over RM211 million from the Local Government Development Ministry to aid in the construction and maintenance of new affordable homes in the state.
The sum of RM211.45 million was pledged today by minister Nga Kor Ming and will be available to the relevant local councils within the next few weeks.
The funds will cover up to 41 projects under the ministry through the city councils for Penang Island (MBPP) and Seberang Prai, Nga said during a working visit to Penang today.
The bulk of the funds will go towards constructing 1,000 community housing units on both the island and mainland districts.
Nga was quick to state that the allocation is not a state election incentive, with Penang being one of six states set to face polls soon.
The ministry does not discriminate against any state, even if it is governed by Perikatan Nasional, Nga said.
Also present today were Penang Housing, Local Government, and Town and Country Planning executive councillor Jagdeep Singh Deo, the island’s mayor and MBPP president Datuk Anthony Rajendran, and Local Government Development Ministry Secretary-General Datuk M. Noor Azman Taib.
On the units to be constructed with the allocation, each will cost RM45,000 and are reserved for candidates from the B40 segment.
The balance of the actual cost of RM250,000 per unit will be borne by the government.
Nga added that at market price, the price of a unit would be around RM300,000.
He added that those eligible can choose either to enter a rent-to-own scheme or purchase units directly by taking up housing loans from lenders.
Other projects covered by the RM211-million allocation are 45 MyKiosks carts for hawkers to lease, while RM9.62 million is for the maintenance of low- and medium-cost high-rises in the state.
Nga also said that RM1 million under the allocation will go towards upgrading the Tun Sardon main market in the Seri Delima state constituency. – The Vibes, June 23, 2023
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