KUALA LUMPUR: As a redevelopment project moves forward at Kampung Sungai Baru, residents say they are struggling with compensation and relocation issues, while authorities insist the project follows legal provisions under the Land Acquisition Act 1960.
Baharuddin, 62, who has lived in the area since the 1970s, said residents were treated unfairly when their land was seized under the Act.
“The government used Section 4 and Section 8 of the Act to seize our land.”
He said compensation varied widely, with some residents receiving between RM69,000 and RM85,000, while those with larger plots were offered more than RM2 million.
“Most (had to accept compensation) far below market value. It depends on land size, but the majority here were given very low amounts.”
He added that some residents were offered about RM1,000 to RM2,500 per square foot, while others received lump sums.
“We are willing to accept redevelopment, but only if the compensation is just, transparent and equal to what others are getting. Otherwise, we cannot accept it. This is ancestral land. We want it preserved for our children and grandchildren. Money is not the issue. Justice is.”
For tenants, the struggle has been even greater. Ruslina, 32, who has rented a unit in the area for more than a decade, said she was given little time to move.
“I rent here, so I do not get any compensation. I have two children, aged four and eight, and now we have to find another place at RM2,000 a month plus deposits. It is very difficult.
“Yesterday, they gave me just one hour to clear my belongings. At 9.45am, they told us to leave and by 11am, everything had to be empty. How is that possible?”
She added that electricity and water had been cut before the demolition crew moved in.
At a press conference at the location, lawyer N. Surendran, representing the Kampung Sungai Baru Residents’ Rights Committee, said the dispute arose from the government’s decision to use compulsory acquisition powers.
“The problem would not exist if residents had been allowed to negotiate directly with the developer. Instead, the government intervened and used the Land Acquisition Act to take the land and force residents to accept compensation.
“Residents never asked for compensation. They wanted to keep their land, their homes and their heritage. Compensation was forced on them. Once Section 8 is invoked, values plunge far below market rate. Everyone in the legal profession knows this.”
He added that residents should not be blamed for refusing to move.
“This is not their fault. Their land and homes were taken using the powers of compulsory acquisition. The current government has a responsibility to resolve the injustice created by the previous one.”
Committee adviser Muzzafar Razman said the use of heavy machinery and hundreds of personnel to evict only a handful of families made the situation feel like a state of emergency.
“We regret the injuries to Dang Wangi police chief ACP Sulizmie Affendy Sulaiman and members of the public, but residents were not responsible. We were inside our homes.”
On Thursday, Sulizmie was injured during a scuffle with individuals claiming to be residents, as enforcement officers carried out a court-ordered demolition.
Committee chairperson Zainab Alias also criticised the process, describing it as “uncivilised”.
She said it began during the Covid-19 lockdown, when residents could not leave their homes or file objections as government offices were closed.
She added that notices were left at unrelated locations, including a surau and vacant houses.
She was responding to a question about why some residents who accepted compensation were reluctant to vacate their homes.
The Kampung Sungai Baru land acquisition covers both terraced houses and flats in Pangsapuri Sungai Baru. The redevelopment project, first proposed in 2016, received formal approval in July 2024, when Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Federal Territories) Datuk Seri Dr Zaliha Mustafa told the Dewan Rakyat that the development order had been granted.
