Penang may turn abandoned flats and houses into workers’ hostels as the government tries to ensure that foreign workers live among themselves.
According to report, S Sundarajoo, the chairman of the state housing committee, said that Penang was also pushing for flats or homes in Seberang Perai that had not been sold or were not in high demand to be turned into hostels for foreign workers.
He said that some companies were already buying several blocks in Seberang Perai South and turning them into living quarters for their workers, which he thought was cool.
“We are also looking at centralized labor quarters (CLQs) within factory premises. Can you imagine if we had this during Covid-19? In the long term, we could control social issues,” he told reporters after opening the inaugural States’ Housing Symposium in Tanjung Bungah today.
The housing boards from Selangor, Melaka, Johor, Pahang, Terengganu, and Sarawak are meeting for two days to share the best ways they do things in their states.
Sundarajoo also said again that Penang will take action against people who rent out cheap or affordable units to other people.
He said this was against the point of giving these kinds of homes to low-income people. They changed the sales and buy agreements for these kinds of units to ensure these rentals were legal.
He also said that the state legal adviser looked into reports that developers were making first-time buyers of affordable homes pay extra for features. These developers would be unable to work on more projects in Penang.
Penang may turn abandoned flats and houses into workers’ hostels as the government tries to ensure that foreign workers live among themselves.