Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today said the Urban Renewal Bill will be a strategic approach to assist economically disadvantaged Malays.
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has assured that the proposed Urban Renewal Bill will protect the status of redeveloped land, dismissing claims that it would be used to deprive the Malay community of their reserve land.
“There is no issue about Malay reserve land. These criticisms miss the point. If we truly want to help the Malays, this is how to do it. We are using all our capacity to develop them,” he stated during Question Time in the Dewan Rakyat today.
Malay reserve land is designated under the Malay Reservation Enactment and can only be owned or transferred among Malays or indigenous communities, ensuring long-term land rights and economic stability.
Government’s commitment to Malay reserve and
Anwar cited Razak Mansion as an example of successful redevelopment while maintaining Malay reserve land status. He emphasised his administration’s commitment, stating that his government is the first since independence in 1957 to designate 50 acres of Bandar Seri Malaysia as Malay reserve land.
“No one before that did it. So, for me, let us not bring that (Malay reserve land) issue,” he asserted.
He was responding to supplementary questions from Gopeng MP Tan Kar Hing, who asked whether the Urban Renewal Bill was necessary, given that successful projects like Kerinchi Residency, Razak Mansion, and Seri Pahang Condominium were completed without it. Tan also sought clarification on the role of state governments in implementing the legislation.
Need for the Urban Renewal Bill
Anwar explained that while development could proceed without the Bill, the process is time-consuming, potentially taking up to a decade. Developers often have to resort to land reclamation laws or engage in lengthy court battles, where compensation follows the property’s value at the time of litigation—often resulting in significantly lower payouts.
The proposed Bill, expected to be tabled later this year, seeks to facilitate the “en bloc” sale of entire strata developments, even without full owner agreement. Currently, under Section 57 of the Strata Titles Act 1985, a strata development can only be sold with 100% owner consent. The new law aims to lower this threshold based on the age and condition of the building.
Proposed changes in consent threshold
- Buildings under 30 years old: 80% owner consent required.
- Buildings over 30 years old: Two-thirds owner consent required.
- Unsafe or abandoned buildings: 50% owner consent required.
The government argues that these amendments will streamline urban redevelopment while maintaining protections for landowners and preserving Malay reserve land.