GEORGE TOWN, Oct 17 — The Real Estate and Housing Developers Association (Rehda) was today urged to point out issues it faced with the local authorities instead of suffering in silence.
Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said the state government would not be able to cut red tape if Rehda chooses not to raise its concerns with the state.
“Silence is not golden so if Rehda chooses to remain silent we will not be able to act to improve productivity and efficiency,” he said in a message issued to Rehda Penang today.
The DAP secretary-general said he hoped Rehda members will continue to uphold certainty, clarity, competency and continuity when dealing with the state government.
Lim said the state government has no “developer friends” but it wants to be friends with everyone by establishing the rule of law and adhering to set rules and procedures.
“We realise that some housing developers had fervently opposed the Pakatan Rakyat state government to the extent of pouring huge sums of money during the May 5 polls but we do not believe in political vengeance,” he added.
The Bagan MP noted that this debunked repeated allegations that the state government sides with its “developer friends”.
He then urged Rehda members to support the state government’s initiatives in building affordable homes while raising any concerns they might have with the state government.
Due to a need for more affordable homes by those in the middle-income group, Lim said the state government had to adopt controls to ensure that housing developers do their fair share of building affordable housing.
“The state government has also undertaken to build 22,172 units of affordable housing in the five districts in the state to meet this need,” he added.
The message was issued to Rehda Penang branch in conjunction with its 39th anniversary celebrations today.
