Caution on foreign ownership

SANDAKAN: Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS) Sabah called on the State Government to seriously consider various aspects of the Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H) programme for foreigners before making any decision.

Its Sabah PAS Deputy Commissioner, Sahar Abdul Majid (pic), who was commenting on the Sabah Housing and Real Estate Developers Association (Shareda) proposal, said:

“For us, although it is part of the move to boost property and State development, it is feared that it will negatively impact Sabah’s socio-economic and economic future.

He said it opened to foreigners whether working in various sectors or as investors and individuals from abroad, Sabah’s real estate would be dominated by this group.

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“They are not just buying houses but also bringing their foreign culture to the State, cultures which are certainly different from local culture,” he said.

Sahar, who is also Sandakan PAS head, said most of those with high purchasing power are from neighbouring countries like China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore, among others.

He added they have the financial strength and ease of owning a home should be given to locals as priority.

He also expressed concern that the group would expand their potential to capitalise on the State’s wealth through opportunities that would otherwise change the political landscape of the State.

“Over the years, we have been working to reduce foreigners but this programme has also included the rights of locals to own homes being affected when they (locals) cannot compete with those with high purchasing power,” he said.

He suggested that the government ensure the people own comfortable homes rather than open up space to foreigners by providing guidelines and regulations to developers to develop affordable housing.

“Costly houses which are unaffordable for most people in the State would certainly lead to locals being unable to compete with foreigners.

“The government should also pave the way through partnerships with local financial and banking institutions to provide credit facilities that do not burden eligible people from buying houses,” he said.

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He stressed that real estate companies should not only think of making profits without looking at the social and economic background of the people in the State.

“We do not want, that through this programme, real estate companies take advantage of house value and prices which are far too high for locals to afford,” he said.

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