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Penang’s first urban regeneration project kicks off, new blocks ready by 2022
Penang state exco Jagdeep Singh Deo said the state will proceed with its first urban regeneration project to demolish 50-year-old low-cost homes that are to be replaced with new apartments. He said the five blocks, comprising 300 units on Jalan Mahsuri in Bayan Baru, will be torn down in stages and 1,150 units will be built in its place. A total of 345 units will be low-medium cost units and 805 will be affordable housing units. Owners of the existing units will each get one low-medium cost (LMC) unit in compensation. Each LMC unit is priced RM72,500 while the affordable housing unit is RM300,000. (Malay Mail)
KL to be sustainable city by 2026
Kuala Lumpur is expected to be world-class sustainable city by 2026, says the Malaysian Institute of Planners (MIP). “We are about 30% away and we are targeting for Kuala Lumpur to be a sustainable city within seven years,” said its president Ihsan Zainal Mokhtar. However, he said there were still many areas that needed to be considered. “To be a sustainable city , we must look beyond the ‘green factors’ like recycling , air pollution and natural catastrophe risks. We need to examine income inequality, housing and living costs, reliability of public transportation among others,” Ihsan said. Another area was public transportation. People in the city preferred to drive as it was more reliable and this has led to traffic congestion. Kuala Lumpur is set to embark on a new journey with its new KL City Plan 2020-2040, which takes a long-term view of its development plans and challenges from various perspectives such as demographic changes, climate change, technology disruptions and scarcity of land. (The Sun Daily)
Govt seeks RM1.69b taxes from Najib
The Government, through the Inland Revenue Board (IRB), is seeking RM1.69 billion in additional tax assessments from former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak in 2011-2017. This was after Najib failed to respond to an initial inquiry by the IRB of additional tax assessments of RM1.47 billion in March this year, resulting in a 10% hike of RM147 million in April and another compounded 5% hike of RM80 million in May. (The Edge)
Home minister moves to decriminalise street demonstrations
Those taking part in street protests or rallies will no longer be criminalised if amendments to the Peaceful Assembly Act 2012 (PAA) are passed. Home Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin proposed the decriminalisation of street protests among other things, including shortening the notification period to the authorities. Furthermore, the ministry plans on proposing more locations where peaceful public assemblies can be held where organisers do not need to notify the authorities. However, the organiser must request permission from the owner of the premises. For the time being, only one location has been gazetted and it is the Darul Makmur Stadium in Pahang. (Malay Mail)
