Govt committed to ensuring Urban Renewal Act will not result in forced evictions or alter land status, says Anwar

• “Under the proposed Act, the government has no right to relocate any owners.”

KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 25): Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said on Tuesday that the proposed Urban Renewal Act would not result in forced eviction or a change in land status.

The lower consent threshold required for an en bloc sale in the proposed legislation would only allow negotiations with property owners to begin, Anwar said. If the Seri Perlis flats in Bandar Tun Razak were to be redeveloped, he said the demographic composition would remain unchanged.

"If the current ownership is 70% Malays, that will remain,” Anwar told the Dewan Rakyat during the prime minister's question time session. “Under the proposed Act, the government has no right to relocate any owners.”

Anwar was responding to a supplementary question from Datuk Ahmad Amzad Mohamed (Perikatan Nasional-Kuala Terengganu), who asked how the government would ensure that the proposed Act would not alter population demographics in urban areas.

Tan Kar Hing (Pakatan Harapan-Gopeng) had earlier asked Anwar to state the government’s commitment to ensuring that, under the Urban Renewal Act, no owners regardless of race will be forcibly evicted from their land or premises, in line with Article 13 of the Constitution.

"This Bill has yet to be presented to Parliament, but I want to assure you that it will align with Article 13 of the Constitution, and existing laws will not be compromised," Anwar said.

Article 13 of the Constitution protects property rights, stating that no person shall be deprived of property, except in accordance with the law, and that no law shall allow the compulsory acquisition or use of property without adequate compensation.

The proposed Act is part of the government’s efforts to revitalise and improve deteriorating townships, which typically involve replacing or restoring substandard buildings, upgrading infrastructure, and enhancing community services.

Under the Act, the consent threshold required for an en bloc sale would vary based on the building’s age. Buildings under 30 years old would require 80% owner consent, while those older than 30 years would need 75% consent.

For buildings deemed unsafe or abandoned, only 51% owner consent would be required.

However, the proposed Act has faced pushback from the opposition, particularly PAS, which accused it of being a subtle tactic to displace poor Malays and Indians from urban areas.

Independent Muar Member of Parliament Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman had reportedly called the Urban Renewal Act a "house-grabbing act", while alleging that the legislation — which has yet to be tabled — could disproportionately benefit developers at the expense of lower-income groups.

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