KUALA LUMPUR: The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has identified multiple discrepancies in nine proceedings related to the sale and development of land by Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL), raising concerns over unchecked urban growth.
PAC chairman Datuk Mas Ermieyati Samsudin said the findings were consolidated into 12 key points, highlighting that DBKL’s advisory board has only advisory authority, unlike other local councils where members share decision-making power.
“This absence of joint decision-making has weakened the system of checks and balances in government land development decisions for Kuala Lumpur,” she said at a press conference in Parliament on Monday (Aug 25).
She added that persistent breaches of the Kuala Lumpur Local Plan have triggered uncontrolled development, allowing numerous parties to file applications without effective oversight. The Federal Capital Act 1960 and Federal Territory (Planning) Act 1982 grant the mayor sweeping authority in urban planning, she noted.
Among the most pressing issues, Mas Ermieyati said, is the revocation of reserved status for public land and green areas in the Local Plan, which were later alienated to developers. This, she warned, jeopardises residents’ quality of life and the city’s ecological balance.
“The planning system has clear weaknesses and must be reviewed thoroughly, especially when justifying high-density projects on open or green spaces,” she stressed.
She also pointed out that Kuala Lumpur MPs were excluded from decisions by the Federal Territories land working committee, which makes rulings based on consensus and input from technical agencies. Yet, in the Kampung Bohol Retention Pond case, objections from 1,275 residents were disregarded when the land was handed over to a developer.
PAC further revealed that the land premium formula, unchanged for 30 years, has led to significant mismatches between market value and alienated land prices, causing government losses. The committee has urged an immediate revision of this formula.
Additional concerns include land being transferred to developers despite containing Irrigation and Drainage Department (DID) infrastructure, and the alienation of 0.35ha in Taman Desa despite objections from the Home Ministry and police.
Mas Ermieyati also noted shortcomings in DBKL’s OSC 3.0 Plus system, which remains inaccessible to the public despite being intended as a transparent information hub on government-owned lands.
The PAC interviewed former Federal Territories ministers, senior officials, and DBKL representatives between Feb 5 and May 21, alongside input from NGOs and related agencies.
To strengthen oversight, PAC has recommended creating a permanent committee to monitor land alienation and development in the city. It also urged that Kuala Lumpur MPs be given a role, and proposed that the Federal Territories Minister chair the committee, with the Chief Secretary to the Government as deputy chairman, supported by the Attorney General and Treasury secretary-general.
Mas Ermieyati confirmed that PAC will table its findings in the Dewan Rakyat on Tuesday (Aug 26).
