Housing Development Act should not be extended to Sabah

KOTA KINABALU, Dec 14, 2011: Extending the Housing Development (Control and Licensing) Act to Sabah will be another erosion of the state's autonomy, said Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) Vice President, Datuk Wong Yit Ming.

He said the proposal by DAP Kota Kinabalu MP Hiew King Cheu for the Act, which was recently amended in the Parliament, to be extended to Sabah as well did not merit consideration because Sabah already has its own Enactment that had successfully curbed abandoned housing development.

"Another extension of a federal law will not help. There are more abandoned housing projects in Malaya than Sabah and Sarawak has it success record or reviving abandoned projects," he said.
Wong said extending the Federal Act to Sabah would also cause the State Government to lose its authority on housing development since everything would have to go through the Federal.

"We do not want another federal law intruding into Sabah. Local developers will all have to get their licences from Putrajaya," he said.

If there is any weakness in the Sabah Housing Enactment, the State Government can improve upon it, no need for a federal law, he said.

He said extending Federal laws to the State had been proven to be non-beneficial just like when the government decided to spread the Money Lending Act to Sabah.

"With the Act in place, we can see more and more money lending companies that are known to charge extravagant interest fees sprouting throughout the State.

"We want a set of law that can control these alongs instead of promoting their existence," he said.

The Housing Development (Control and Licensing) Act 1966, which was amended to give more protection to housebuyers by allowing criminal proceedings to be taken against renegade developer should be applicable only to Semenanjung in view of the many cases happening there.

"In Sabah our law is sufficient to curb abandoned housing project … the Federal housing project that Hiew pointed out as being abandoned in Sabah should be pushed out to the Housing and Local Government Ministry," he said.

Wong said it was understandable that DAP as a peninsular-based party would want the Act to cover Sabah as well.

"I think DAP will let more federal laws take root in Sabah, like what Umno has done with the Money Lenders Act which loan sharks now follow into Sabah.