Consultant to trace owners to resolve Kampung Baru land issues

KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 2): The Kampung Baru Development Corporation (KBDC) will appoint a consultant to intensify efforts to trace the village's landowners or their beneficiaries through a "Jejak Waris" programme, Bernama reported.

KBDC chairman Datuk Affendi Zahari said an allocation had been approved by the government for the purpose so that development plans for the century-old Malay settlement in the heart of capital city Kuala Lumpur could be carried out. 

He said to date, problems relating to landowners and beneficiaries of 12 lots of land had been resolved by a special team which was established under the programme.

"The government has agreed to allocate RM350,000 which I feel is sufficient for us to appoint a consultant to meet up with individual landowners in solving the matter according to Shariah provisions.

"It is hoped that with this allocation too we can increase our manpower for the 'mobile team' to enable us to meet more landowners," he told Bernama.

He added that the "Jejak Waris" programme which provided a fairer settlement, would facilitate approval from landowners.

However, he declined to comment on the percentage of land area that KBDC had managed to acquire.

In a related development, Affendi said the Duta-Ulu Klang 2 (Duke 2) Highway project which would be linked to Kampung Baru, was proof of the government's commitment to put in place the infrastructure commensurate with the planned development.

He said a meeting would be arranged soon to identify a suitable route to connect Kampung Baru to the expressway.

"If the identified route involves land acquisition, landowners will be compensated according to the market price," he said.

Kampung Baru was established 110 years ago and is administered by the Malay Agricultural Settlement Administration Board, which is responsible for the welfare and interests of landowners in the settlement.

In 2011, the government approved the Kampung Baru Development Body 2011, a piece of legislation to govern the redevelopment of the Malay community.

Kampung Baru has long been coveted by developers for its high-value land and strategic location. It is spread incongruously over 153ha amidst gleaming skyscrapers and just kilometres away from the iconic Petronas Twin Towers.

Various efforts over the past 30 years to modernise and redevelop the village have been met with resistance, mainly from landowners and villagers who will not move for any price. There are also problems in tracking down the legitimate land owners and beneficiaries.

In September last year, KBDC said it had received positive response from 88% of landowners who had agreed to plans to develop the area.

KBDC had also tabled a draft of the Kampung Baru development master plan to the villagers. -- The Malaysian Insider

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