08/05/2008 The Star By Geetha Krishnan

FAILED projects are the bane of any modern city and a planned enclave like the nation’s administration centre Putrajaya has not been spared the construction consternation.

The fiasco of the stalled housing project at Precinct 11 has been kept under wraps for two years to protect the Putrajaya image but the disappointed and disgruntled buyers are not prepared to suffer in silence.

Eyesore: The signboard outside the stalled project.

A group of them met with StarMetro recently and divulged some pertinent details of the mixed-development project.

The project comprises the Garden Resort and Amber Homes double-storey link houses, Citrine semi-detached houses, Saujana Aster condominium and shop offices, all priced at between RM165,500 and RM882,996. There are also double-storey and two-and-a-half-storey houses for civil servants.

According to a Garden Resort buyer who asked not to be identified, the buyers are getting the raw end of the deal owing to a dispute between Peremba Jaya Sdn Bhd and Putrajaya Holdings Sdn Bhd (PJH).

“The bulk of the project was originally given to Arif Cerah Sdn Bhd, a company under Peremba, but Arif Cerah got into financial difficulties and the work stalled in 2005,” the buyer said.


Bright spot: The completed playground sticks out like a sore thumb amidst the stalled project.

“We heard that PJH then terminated the contract with Arif Cerah due to the delay and we are caught in a bind as a result. We have already invested a substantial amount of money and have been servicing our loans since the project stalled,” he said.

According to Amber Homes buyer Stanley Ng, the sales and purchase agreement was signed in 2003 and delivery was promised in 2005.

Ng said he had received a letter from the developer in September last year promising delivery this month.

“How can my house be ready when I have gone to the site and seen that the construction work is about 45% complete? The infrastructure is also incomplete,” said Ng, who booked a RM293,000 double-storey link house.

Amber Homes buyer Mawina Mat Aris said she learnt that Arif Cerah was to have surrendered the land title to PJH on April 30 for work to resume under the responsibility of PJH but the arrangement only applied to the government houses.

Ugly sight: Fallen hoarding only adds to the unsightly image.

“Why the discrimination? We are already being victimised through late delivery and do not know if any party will fulfil its obligation to compensate us,” she said.

Mawina said that the bank where she obtained her loan had already released more than RM100,000 for her house, and she was also paying a RM700 monthly instalment to the bank. The buyers also said that work on the government units had resumed but the other houses remained untouched.

StarMetro visited the site yesterday and found that while some of the houses were nearing completion, most were left partially completed. Untrimmed grass added to the ugly picture.

According to statistics obtained from sources, 23 of the 26 Garden Resort houses offered for sale have been sold, 104 of the 114 units of Saujana Aster Condominium were sold, 72 of the 97 Amber Homes houses were sold and 12 of the 22 Citrine houses were sold. The shop offices were all sold out.

Stalled: The Garden Resort houses were almost 65% complete.

When contacted in November 2006, an Arif Ceria spokesman had said that the project was slowed down due to unforeseen circumstances.

“However, we will fulfil all obligations stipulated under the sales and purchase agreement and will compensate buyers for late delivery. We also want to assure buyers that the project will be completed,” he said.

PJH, meanwhile, declined to comment on the matter, stating this was due to a legal dispute between the companies.

The buyers have decided to form a committee to seek legal redress and hope to forward their complaints to the Housing Tribunal.