Construction of 52,240 PPR houses completed - Lajim

TAWAU (Sabah): A total of 52,240 units have already been built under the People's Housing Scheme (PPR) project to enable the low income group, single mothers and the poor to rent such houses said Housing and Local Government deputy minister Datuk Seri Lajim Ukin.

He said the 52,240 units was part of the 74,084 units to be built throughout the country by end of 2010.
"Most of the houses built under the PPR project are flats that will be rented out for RM124 a month per unit. The PPR houses once completed will be handed over to the us for maintenance and rental collection," said Lajim in his speech during a handing over ceremony for 900 PPR units at Batu 8, Jalan Apas, built at a cost of RM59.3 million, on Monday May 17.

In his speech read out by Sabah's assistant finance minister and Apas state assemblyman Datuk Tawfiq Abu Bakar Titingan, Lajim said the government has decided to build more PPR houses, including in Sabah, to achieve
the 'zero' squatter target by 2020.

Lajim said under the Ninth Malaysia Plan (RMK-9) alone, the government  has targetted to build 709,400 units from 2006 to 2010.

"The government had allocated RM9.5 billion for the housing scheme under RMK-9, compared with RM7 billion under RMK-8," said Lajim.

He added that relocating squatters to PPR houses would enable the government to use the land previously resided by squatters, for other infrastructure development.-- Bernama