Gov't offer for Kg Baru is highest so far for Malay reserve land

The government is confident that property owners in Kampung Baru will take up its offer of RM1,000 per square foot, as this is the highest amount offered for Malay Reserve Land anywhere, said Federal Territories Minister Khalid Abdul Samad.

The RM1,000 per square foot offer is equivalent to RM43.5 million per acre, he said at a press conference in Putrajaya today with Kuala Lumpur mayor Nor Hisham Ahmad Dahlan present.

The offer comprises RM850 per square foot to be reflected in the choice made by individual property owners - among the choices offered to them are cash, a completed apartment or condominium unit (to be constructed as part of the government's redevelopment plans for the area), and a combination of cash and a completed unit.

The remaining RM150 per square foot, will be provided in the form of shares in a company which will serve as a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) in connection with the redevelopment project.

So far, of the total number of 5,359 property owners, 1,716 have responded to the government, with 93.7 per cent agreeing to sell, while 6.2 per cent have disagreed and 0.1 per cent have not responded clearly, said Khalid.

He also brushed aside the recent observation by former finance minister II Johari Abdul Ghani that it was illogical of the Pakatan Harapan government to require a 100 percent agreement among all owners regarding the sale of property in Kampung Baru.

"We, the government, urge and appeal to all owners to come back to the original intention behind the establishment of Kampung Baru, which was to ensure there was an appropriate number of Malays in Kuala Lumpur.

"We need to develop Kampung Baru so that the number of Malay residents in Kuala Lumpur can be increased," said Khalid.

The minister added that it would be prudent of property owners to accept the offer as it would be difficult in the future to address the existing ownership problems in Kampung Baru, in that one property grant could contain the names of many heirs, with some grants having up to 150 names each.

- Bernama