Sabah to decide on PPR– Zuraidah

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Zuraidah (fifth left), Kalabakan member of parliament Ma’mun Sulaiman (eighth left), State Assistant Finance Minister cum Merotai assemblyman Saifuddin Hata (seventh left), Tanjung Batu assemblywoman Datuk Hamisa Samat (third left), Balung assemblyman Datuk Osman Jamal (second left) and Tawau Municipal Council president Datuk Ir. Hj Amrullah Hj Kamal (sixth left) during the handing over of letters of offer to 470 successful applicants for the PPR Taman Sri Bukit Tawau, Merotai, yesterday.

TAWAU: The Housing and Local Government Ministry leaves it to the Sabah state government to determine whether the People Housing Program (PPR) will be a transit program or a rent-to-own after five years.

Its minister, Zuraidah Kamaruddin, said the state government must study the needs, the viability and ability using this concept.

She said for a rent-to-own program, if the tenants are good rent payees, they could be offered to buy the houses.

“However, it depends on the state government … this is only a proposal,” she said when met after handing over letters of offer to 470 successful applicants of PPR Taman Sri Bukit Tawau, Merotai in Kalabakan yesterday.

On whether the PPR Taman Sri Bukit Tawau tenants are relocated squatters, she said half of the PPR tenants who received the letters of offer were squatters for relocation.

Zuraidah said under the new government the screening process of applicants takes more time as it does not want those who are not eligible to get an offer.

In future, she said completed PPR should be filled within six months and for that, the selection process will be made earlier so that the PPR will not be without tenants for a long period.

On the 10,847 people who had applied and are still waiting to get an offer under the program in the district, she said to accommodate Tawau needs, her ministry will study to see how it can help and encourage the private developers to build affordable homes in the district.

“We encourage private developers together with the government to develop affordable homes for those who cannot afford to buy homes such as rent-to-own homes program that allows them to get a bank loan after paying rents for five years,” she said, adding she will be visiting a rent-to-own housing site at Mile 5 Apas Road that will be developed by a private developer which must be below RM300,000 for the B40 group.

Currently there are five PPRs in Tawau – PPR Taman Sri Balung with 970 units, PPR Taman Sri Titingan (500 units), PPR Taman Bt. 8 Sri Apas (900 units), PPR Taman Sri Semarak (500 units) and the latest Taman Sri Bukit Tawau with 470 units.

In total, there are 3,340 units of PPR houses in Tawau that received a total of 14,187 applications which leaves a total of 10,847 applicants still waiting for PPR units.