Single mothers, OKUs to get priority for SMJ houses
KOTA KINABALU: Single mothers and persons with disabilities (OKU) in Tongod district who are not registered under e-Kasih will be given priority to apply for and own a Rumah Mesra Sabah Maju Jaya (SMJ).
Kuamut assemblyman Datuk Masiung Banah said that the owners of houses affected by disasters such as fires or floods also deserve consideration.
He pointed out that although the e-Kasih register is the main condition for applying for the housing assistance, single mothers, disabled people, and families affected by disasters cannot be left out.
“I found that many single mothers and disabled people in Tongod are not registered in eKasih data, but they deserve to be treated equally. There is a flaw in the e-Kasih database and it needs to be updated every year according to the conditions set,” he told reporters after handing over the keys to 20 recipients of the Rumah Mesra SMJ in Kampung Alitang, Tongod on Friday.
According to Masiung, Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) is the first Sabah government to introduce such assistance for Sabahans who have yet to own their own house.
According to him, as many as 60 SMJ houses have been and are being built in the Tongod district since 2021, involving an expenditure of RM480,000 and added that the state government allocated RM80,000 for each house under the Sabah Maju Jaya development program.
This year alone, he said the state government had spent RM5,840,000 to construct SMJ houses in 73 constituencies of the State Assembly.
In addition to having the opportunity to receive SMJ housing assistance, those in Sabah who are registered in e-Kasih also can apply for housing assistance from the Program Perumahan Rakyat (PPR) under the federal government’s allocation.