Sungai Tekali ‘foreigner flat’ vacant after enforcement action
HULU LANGAT: The much-discussed “foreigner flat” in Sungai Tekali now stands empty and cordoned off but residents say years of overcrowded units populated by migrants have left behind rubbish, unease and deep resentment towards the property owner.
A retired resident near the site, who asked to be known only as Naim, 65, said foreign tenants who had previously moved freely around the neighbourhood were no longer present following enforcement action, but the damage to community relations remain.
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He added that residents had long been troubled by the number of individuals crammed into the units, which were allegedly rented out for between RM500 and RM600 a month.
“One kitchen, two rooms. Then they packed it full. People did not like it because there were too many of them,” he told theSun.
He also said rubbish was a recurring complaint, with food wrappers and other waste allegedly left along pathways and beneath trees.
Naim said resentment was directed not only at former occupants, but also at the owner, whom residents believed had profited from the rentals.
A 32-year-old bread seller from Cheras, who has been trading near the site for six months, said customers had spoken of foreign tenants living in the area for years.
One customer mentioned Rohingya tenants renting units for up to a decade, with monthly rents cited at between RM300 and RM400 – lower than Naim’s figures, although both accounts placed the cost at several hundred ringgit.
“People around here were not happy with (the landlord) because he rented the place to foreigners,” the trader said.
A check by theSun found additional structures and a settlement behind the main block had been demolished, leaving behind piles of concrete, twisted metal, wood, damaged water tanks and other debris.
The main block remained standing but appeared vacant and cordoned off with tape and used zinc sheets and wooden panels. Inside, abandoned items that included refrigerators, plastic chairs, bottled water, household goods and storage racks were visible.
A demolition worker at the site said earlier enforcement operations had involved police, immigration and district authorities, and claimed as many as 30 to 40 families had once occupied the structures.
“Before this, there were many people here. But after the operation by immigration, police and the district office, there is no one now.”
The worker also claimed a section of the area had been used as parking space before being converted into living quarters.
“At first, (the landlord) said he wanted to have a parking lot for cars. “After that, he built something like a house, and people could stay there.”
An officer from the Hulu Langat parliamentary service centre met at the site confirmed no foreign occupants remained.
He said the service centre had been conducting daily checks to relay updates to authorities, with enforcement remaining under the district office and Kajang Municipal Council. He added that the owner had been given a two-week period to carry out demolition works.
“We also have to remember that demolishing is not so simple. There are people’s houses in front, so the safety aspect has to be taken care of.
“The owner is the one demolishing it. If he complies and demolishes it, the government does not have to spend money.
“Now that he has started demolishing it, we have to give him time to do it. We check on the progress every day to monitor the situation,” he told theSun.
The Selangor government and Hulu Langat District and Land Office had previously said enforcement action had been ongoing since 2016, involving notices, compounds, integrated operations and demolition.
llegal occupation notices were issued in 2017, 2020, 2021 and on March 13 last year, while the municipal council had issued notices and compound offers in 2016, 2017, 2019 and 2021.
When asked about the whereabouts of former occupants, the officer said information was limited as they had dispersed.
“They have gone everywhere. They are around, but we do not know where their new place is.
