Make PJ freehold or face wrath of voters, say residents

Angry Petaling Jaya residents have urged the Selangor government to correct the inequality, disparity and discrimination executed by the previous Barisan Nasional government in randomly declaring some sections freehold and others leasehold. 

Kelana Jaya, where the former menteri besar and exco members lived, was converted from leasehold to freehold more than 10 years ago. Other sections developed by private builders - Section 17, Petaling Garden, Paramount and SEA Park - are also freehold. 

There are also pockets of condos and houses spread out over the city owned by Yayasan Selangor and the state government which have arbitrarily been converted to freehold. 

During a three-hour meeting at the PJ Civic Centre last night, more than 300 Petaling Jaya residents fumed about how the BN government had declared certain areas freehold indiscriminately. The residents were joined by professionals who are also property owners. 

They urged the Pakatan government to declare Sections 1 to 16 freehold, or it may have to face the wrath of the voters in the coming 13th general election. 

Some 500,000 owners of houses in Petaling Jaya are affected by an alleged administrative error executed by the BN government, which issued leasehold titles. 

Section 5 Residents Association vice-president and lawyer V Sivaparanjothi said that it was a wrong in the past to arbitrarily issue freehold and leasehold titles. He requested the authorities to “immediately rectify this travesty of justice without any further delay and return the rightful freehold status to the residents”.

“The current government must set it right before the coming general election as Petaling Jaya has always been a freehold area of some 3,800 acres as the Petaling Rubber Estates Limited before the 1950s,” said Sivaparanjothi, who recently returned after carrying out research on titles at the London Archives.

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