PETALING JAYA, Oct 5 — The Johor state government should reject a proposal to end Bumiputera quotas and discounts for real estate valued over RM1 million, said the Malay Economic Action Council (MTEM).
The group was commenting on the remarks by the Johor chapter of Real Housing Estate and Developers Association (Rehda) that units at this price point in all categories often remained unsold due to low demand.
MTEM chief executive Ahmad Yazid Othman instead alleged that developers were simply trying to avoid paying the charge to convert these units for sale to non-Bumiputra buyers.
“MTEM believes Rehda Johor is only thinking of the interests of their members by lobbying for the abolishment of such restrictions.
“The real aim of Rehda Johor is to eliminate the fee imposed by the Johor state government when applying for a conversion of Bumiputra status lots,” Ahmad Yazid said in a statement.
He warned Johor that agreeing to the proposal would cause it to lose a significant revenue source.
Such fees brought over RM600 million into the state’s coffers, he said when saying these funds were partly used to build some 6,000 units in the Johor Affordable Housing Scheme (RMMJ).
While acknowledging that over 80,000 units reserved for Bumiputras were still unsold in the state, he insisted the 40 per cent quota should be maintained to encourage Bumiputra property ownership.
