Reprieve for demolition of longhouses

Petaling Jaya City Council has assured the residents that their houses will not be torn down and there will be further talks with the residents

PETALING JAYA: The developer in dispute with the longhouse residents in PJS 1 had given a assurance that it would not demolish the longhouses belonging to two residents there.

Selangor state executive councillor Iskandar Abdul Samad made the announcement after a four-hour meeting yesterday with representatives from the developer, Peter Brickworks Sdn Bhd, and the Petaling Jaya City Hall (MBPJ) at the Selangor state government office.

However, the announcement did not go down well with the residents as the developer merely gave a verbal assurance.

“We waited at the office from 2pm, hoping that we will be allowed to take part in the discussion but that never happened,” said the residents’ action committee chairman M Sugumaran.

The 27 families residing at the longhouses in PJS 1 were moved by the developer to the area after promising to build a low-cost flat for them.

On May 23, two out of the 27 families residing at the longhouses in PJS 1 received eviction orders from the developer calling them to vacate their homes by May 30.

However, the residents refused to budge as the developer had yet to build the flats as promised although they have been paying instalments to the bank since 2003.

The eviction was postponed after MBPJ issued a stop-work order against Peter Brickworks in a move to compel the latter to iron out the issues with the residents.

Sugumaran said that the residents were now afraid that the developer might not inform the court bailiff of the latest development, who had promised to enforce the eviction order at 12 noon today.
The residents had since lodged a police report on the matter.

Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) treasurer A Sivarajan, who was present with the residents, said that Iskandar informed them that there would be a follow-up meeting with Peter Brickworks on Monday to deliberate the matter further.

On why the residents were not allowed to participate in the talks, Sivarajan said he was unsure.
“For now, we hope that the developer will convey the message to the bailiff in order to stop the demolition,” he said.