22/06/2026

MONDAY | JUNE 22, 2026 5 Call for landlords to be prosecuted PETALING JAYA: Housing policy experts have called on authorities to prosecute landlords, not just occupants, over the Hulu Langat “foreigner flat” case, adding that renting unsafe, overcrowded premises to vulnerable tenants with little bargaining power amounts to housing exploitation. Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) real estate expert Assoc Prof Dr Muhammad Najib Razali said the case must prompt a shift in focus from who lives in such premises to who controls, profits from and maintains them. “(The authorities) must identify who profits from unsafe rental arrangements, impose responsibility on those parties and prevent informal high-density housing from becoming commercially viable in the first place. “When premises are subdivided or rented out in unsafe conditions, the issue is not only who lives there, but who controls, profits from and maintains the premises. “The policy principle should be that responsibility follows control and profit,“ he told theSun . Muhammad Najib said the case does not necessarily point to an absence of laws but raised questions over whether existing powers were triggered and coordinated early enough when private premises were allegedly converted into high-density rental accommodation. He cited the National Land Code 1965; Town and Country Planning Act 1976; Street, Drainage and Building Act 1974; Local Government Act 1976; Uniform Building By Laws 1984; Fire Services Act 1988 and Solid Waste and Public Cleansing Management Act 2007 as relevant to land use, planning approval, building safety, fire risk, sanitation, waste and public health. He added that the Employees’ Minimum Standards of Housing, Accommodations and Amenities Act 1990 was also relevant when accommodation was linked to employment, but may not fully cover informal private rentals when tenants were not housed directly by employers. “The issue is not only unlawful occupation, but also the existence of a rental market operating outside planning approval, building safety control, tenancy oversight and minimum habitability standards.“ Meanwhile, UTM housing community expert Assoc Prof Dr Noorsyidi Aizuddin Mat Noor cautioned against framing the issue solely as a foreigner or Rohingya matter. “It is a much larger issue involving property governance, control over building use, rental monitoring and enforcement, which must now be seen in the context of integrated enforcement. It can no longer work in silos.“ He added that private ownership does not entitle landlords to build, alter or rent premises without oversight, as land remained subject to land-use conditions, planning permission, building approval and other statutory requirements. He also said governance gaps typically emerged after approval, when premises originally intended for ordinary use were subsequently converted into included small rooms, unregistered dormitories or high-density rental units. “When a house is converted into high-density accommodation, the change is clear and visible. “At that point, there should be records, a monitoring system, inspections or a response to the situation. Instead, it appears to have been left alone.“ Noorsyidi said the existing approach of waiting for complaints, issuing notices and demolishing structures was no longer adequate. “We need to move enforcement from being reactive to being preventive, with proactive rental governance.“ – By Faiz Ruzman

‘Foreigner flat trauma’ leaves residents troubled

and people could stay there.” An officer from the Hulu Langat parliamentary service centre met at the site confirmed no foreign occupants remained. He said the service centre had been conducting daily checks to relay updates to authorities, with enforcement remaining under the district office and Kajang Municipal Council. He added that the owner had been given a two-week period to carry out demolition works. “We also have to remember that demolishing is not so simple. There are people’s houses in front, so the safety aspect has to be taken care of. “The owner is the one demolishing it. If he complies and demolishes it, the government does not have to spend money. “Now that he has started demolishing it, we have to give him time to do it. We check on the progress every day to monitor the situation,” he told theSun . The Selangor government and Hulu Langat District and Land Office had previously said enforcement action had been ongoing since 2016, involving notices, compounds, integrated operations and demolition. llegal occupation notices were issued in 2017, 2020, 2021 and on March 13 last year, while the municipal council had issued notices and compound offers in 2016, 2017, 2019 and 2021. When asked about the whereabouts of former occupants, the officer said information was limited as they had dispersed. “They have gone everywhere. They are around, but we do not know where their new place is.”

A 32-year-old bread seller from Cheras, who has been trading near the site for six months, said customers had spoken of foreign tenants living in the area for years. One customer mentioned Rohingya tenants renting units for up to a decade, with monthly rents cited at between RM300 and RM400 – lower than Naim’s figures, although both accounts placed the cost at several hundred ringgit. “People around here were not happy with (the landlord) because he rented the place to foreigners,” the trader said. A check by theSun found additional structures and a settlement behind the main block had been demolished, leaving behind piles of concrete, twisted metal, wood, damaged water tanks and other debris. The main block remained standing but appeared vacant and cordoned off with tape and used zinc sheets and wooden panels. Inside, abandoned items that included refrigerators, plastic chairs, bottled water, household goods and storage racks were visible. A demolition worker at the site said earlier enforcement operations had involved police, immigration and district authorities, and claimed as many as 30 to 40 families had once occupied the structures. “Before this, there were many people here. But after the operation by immigration, police and the district office, there is no one now.” The worker also claimed a section of the area had been used as parking space before being converted into living quarters. “At first, (the landlord) said he wanted to have a parking lot for cars. “After that, he built something like a house,

o Sungai Tekali locals wrestle with pent-up unease, resentment towards owner

Ű BY FAIZ RUZMAN newsdesk@thesundaily.com

HULU much-discussed “foreigner flat” in Sungai Tekali now stands empty and cordoned off but residents say years of overcrowded units populated by migrants have left behind rubbish, unease and deep resentment towards the property owner. A retired resident near the site, who asked to be known only as Naim, 65, said foreign tenants who had previously moved freely around the neighbourhood were no longer present following enforcement action, but the damage to community relations remain. He added that residents had long been troubled by the number of individuals crammed into the units, which were allegedly rented out for between RM500 and RM600 a month. “One kitchen, two rooms. Then they packed it full. People did not like it because there were too many of them,” he told theSun . He also said rubbish was a recurring complaint, with food wrappers and other waste allegedly left along pathways and beneath trees. Naim said resentment was directed not only at former occupants, but also at the owner, whom residents believed had profited from the rentals. LANGAT: The

A check by theSun found the additional structures and settlement behind the main block had been demolished, leaving piles of concrete, twisted metal, wood, damaged water tanks and other debris. – ADAM AMIR HAMZAH/THESUN

Cops arrest brothers in RM1.7 million drug bust KUALA TERENGGANU: Police have arrested two brothers suspected of using their house in Kampung Duyong Besar here as a storage facility for drugs worth RM1.76 million. syndicate that smuggled it into the country via sea routes,“ he told a press conference yesterday.

cigarettes that could induce intoxication.” Mohd Khairi said police also seized various assets worth a total of RM149,000 during the raid, comprising a car, three motorcycles and RM6,000 in cash. He added that the remand period for the two brothers, which began on June 15, has been extended by another seven days to facilitate further investigations under Section 39B of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952. Mohd Khairi said Ops Tapis Khas, conducted from June 12 to 14, resulted in the arrest of 243 individuals for various drug-related offences. – Bernama

He said both suspects tested negative for drugs, adding that the 50-year-old man has 13 drug-related records, while his younger brother has no criminal history. He also said the drugs seized, estimated to be sufficient for 44,000 doses, are believed to be intended for the international market. “Based on our investigations, the ganja buds were meant to be sent overseas. They would have been processed to extract liquid, which we believe is used for electronic

Terengganu police chief Datuk Mohd Khairi Khairudin said the siblings, aged 39 and 50, were arrested with about 22kg of suspected ganja buds during a raid at about 3.30pm on June 14 under Ops Tapis Khas. “Initial investigations found that both suspects acted as storekeepers for a syndicate believed to have been active since March. The drug supply is believed to have been obtained from an international