9,146 new and restored houses for poorest this year

BANGI: The government targets to build 5,692 new houses and restore another 3,454 for the poorest in the country under the Housing Assistance Programme before the year-end.

Rural and Regional Development Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal said of the total figure, 1,618 of the new houses would be built in the peninsula, 2,345 in Sabah and 1,729 in Sarawak.

As for restoration, he said, it would involve 919 houses in the peninsula, 449 in Sabah and 2,087 in Sarawak.

Shafie said the government had allocated RM300 million to build the new houses and restore dilapidated ones for the poorest.

"For 2010, 6,204 new houses were built and 10,722 restored, bringing the total number to 16,926," he said after presenting the Excellent Service Awards 2010 to the ministry's staff, here, on Tuesday, June 7.

Also present were his deputies Datuk Joseph Entulu and Datuk Hasan Malek, and the ministry's secretary-general Datuk Ibrahim Muhammad.

Shafie said that as of May 27 this year, 548 new houses had been built and 531 repaired and restored.

On another matter, he said a series of discussions had been held with the Public Service Department recently to allow some of the Orang Asli who had joined the public service to be placed in the various ministries and departments.

He said 1,305 posts had been filled by the Orang Asli in the public sector up to April 18 this year, comprising 80 posts in the management and professional group and 1,225 in the support group.

Shafie said the Orang Asli Development Department had also set up the Career Unit to encourage more Orang Asli to venture into the technical, entrepreneurial and professional fields. — Bernama