HOUSING for the lower-income group is a big problem in all states and Kelantan is no exception. Public housing or affordable homes, which means houses costing under RM100,000 is scarce in the state.
Menteri Besar Datuk Ahmad Yakob, after taking over the post in 2013, said the state government would build between 1,000 and 5,000 units of low-cost and affordable houses within the next five years.
He said the state government would provide a subsidy of about RM30,000 for the purchase of a unit in housing projects costing between RM25 million and RM30 million built by state government subsidiaries.
However, the truth is such projects are few and the several that had been planned were slow to take off and some even failed to see the light of day. One such project was planned at a site behind the Muhammadi Mosque besides the Kelantan river in Kota Baru. The ground breaking ceremony was carried out by the late Menteri Besar Datuk Nik Aziz Nik Mat during the 2013 General Election.
The project, which is a mix of high-end and low-cost apartments, was to be undertaken by a State Economic Development Corporation (PKINK) subsidiary and the more than 200 villagers living there were supposed to be moved to a temporary settlement. Until today, villagers are staying put at the site and construction has not even started.
To be fair, there were projects that have been successful, mostly joint ventures by the local authorities and the private sector. However, most of the projects were outside Kota Baru, probably because of cheaper land and costs.
The Kelantan government blamed the federal government for failure to build public housing in the state all this while. It said the federal government has failed to provide housing grants to the state since Pas took over the administration in 1990.
The few public housing constructed under the Barisan Nasional government in the 1980s including the Buluh Kubu and Dusun Raja flats in Kota Baru are now in almost deplorable condition and by right, should be repaired or better, be rebuilt.
Critics, however, blamed the state for its wrong priorities. They said the state government was only interested in approving condominiums and apartments and not giving priority to public housing especially in Kota Baru.
They say the condominiums and apartments which were mushrooming were not only being built by the private sector but also by PKINK subsidiaries which have jumped onto the bandwagon when they should have focused on providing affordable homes to the people.
Several citizen groups have also voiced their displeasure over the construction of the condominiums and apartments which have changed the skyline of the quiet, calm and peaceful town.
The critics said the majority of the people cannot afford to buy the units which cost about RM250,000 to RM500,000 each, and most were taken up by a few rich businessmen and Kelantan-born investors from Kuala Lumpur or other states who rent them out as homestays or use them as their holiday homes.
State Local Government, Housing and Sports Committee chairman Datuk Abdul Fattah Mahmood has admitted that the state government has approved nine projects for construction of condominiums and high-end apartments costing more than RM4 billion in the past two years.
Meanwhile, in Gua Musang, there is a different kind of story. The People’s Housing Project (Projek Perumahan Rakyat, PPR) consisting of about 1,000 units in Persiaranraya Bandar Baru was completed more than two years ago but has yet to be given to the successful applicants.
The project is one of the promises made by the Barisan Nasional for winning the Galas by-election in 2010. It is understood that the delay over the selection of applicants in the early stage has been solved.
The writer is NST Kelantan bureau chief