Reprieve for Imbi dwellers
25/05/2004 NST

RESIDENTS of the Jalan Barat flats in Medan Imbi, Kuala Lumpur, can now rest easy with the assurance that they can continue living in their current premises until plans to relocate them are finalised.

The assurance was given by MP for Bukit Bintang, Fong Kui Lun, during a recent Press conference.

More than 20 families living in the flats received notices from the Department of Lands and Mines director general last week to vacate their homes within seven days. The notice stated that the flats would be demolished to make way for a new development project.

"The current property comprises two small shops and several shophouses.

These will be demolished to make way for some new offices which will be rented out to a privately-owned company," said Fong.

"This is extremely unfair as the residents, most of whom have been living and working there for more than 20 years, will not be compensated.

"They also have nowhere to go," he said. "They came to me with their problem and I immediately highlighted the matter to S. Sothinathan, the Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Environment, who has promised to look into it as soon as possible," he added.

Fong has suggested that the residents be relocated to some nearby flats along Jalan Cochrane.

"I have been given to understand that the relocation can only take place later as the new flats along Jalan Cochrane have yet to be issued with certificates of fitness by City Hall.

"However, I have been assured by Sothinathan that the residents will be allowed to stay until the issue of their relocation is finalised," he said.

"It is unfair to ask us to move out without sufficient notice as we have nowhere to go.

"I have been running a small grocery store in Jalan Barat for more than 40 years and the move will affect my livelihood unless I am compensated," said Pang Siew Voon.

According to Pang, this is not the first time the residents have been
issued with such a notice. "It happened several times before but we were never seriously asked to move out.," he added.