BY PRIYA MENON

Give residents a chance: PPR Kota Damansara has been in the limelight for the wrong reasons – two deaths, badly maintained facilities and high crime rate. – filepic

IN THE last three years, PPR Kota Damansara has been in the limelight for the wrong reasons – two deaths, badly maintained facilities and high crime rates.

I have reported at least 16 stories on the dilapidated PPR (People’s Housing Project) flats and now that things are finally looking up for its residents, I cannot help but feel that those negative incidents could have been avoided.

For years, the people have been living in conditions I deem unfit for humans. The railings on each floor and the staircases were rusty and damaged while the lifts were constantly breaking down. The place was a hub for drug addicts, who left behind stolen motorcycles all over the place.

At the back of my mind, all I could think about was if only the railings were fixed when it first gave way. Could the deaths of two innocent five-year-olds be avoided if red tape and delayed funds were not an issue?

Could the PPR flats, one of the worst in Selangor, have been transformed into a safe and people-friendly housing estate years ago if maintenance was done promptly?

Perhaps, but the people in charge of maintenance, first the Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) and then Perumahan dan Hartanah Selangor Sdn Bhd (PHSSB), have time and again blamed lack of funds for the problems.

PHSSB said the people had to pay up their rental to be used for maintenance works while MBPJ said they just did not have the budget to conduct such large scale repairs.

The Federal Government’s Implementation and Coordination Unit (ICU), however, offered to pay for the railing repairs in 2013 after the death of the first victim Thinesh Raj. The money unfortunately never came, but, was it wise for the state government to wait for that to come through before carrying out the repairs? Had they not waited for it, the railings could have been installed earlier.

Had the authorities channelled the funds immediately, the second boy, Muhammad Zul Hazriq Danish Alden, could still be alive today. Well I guess it is better late than never. But now that the most dangerous part of the flats is being given due attention, it is time to focus on the community.

While visiting the flats, my colleague Vincent and I carefully dashed into the building to avoid being hit by things that were falling from the floors above.

Checking the objects that had fallen (glass and egg shells), we heard giggles not too far away. Searching for the source of the noise, we stumbled upon a group of children playing in a ditch. Aged between four and 10, these children were jumping inside the dry drains to catch tiny frogs as bait for their fishing adventure at a mining pond in Section 9, Kota Damansara.

After chatting with the boys, we walked around only to stumble on at least a dozen Aedes breeding spots. Tyres, bottles, styrofoam boxes and plastic bags, the nightmare of any anti-dengue team were aplenty.

Just as we walked out, we spotted a cute little boy, no more than two years old, playing on an abandoned motorcycle with a group of girls. One slip and any of the sharp metal objects protruding from the machine could have seriously injured him.

It is time for the people to wake up and be responsible for their neighbourhood. Unfortunately, more often than not, this is the last thing on their minds. About 90% of the families there are busy making ends meet to provide at least one decent meal a day for their children. They have no time for social awareness but if left like this, the situation will never change.

If a little help is given to these families, a little consideration for their rent or other needs, they might just be grateful enough to take care of their homes. More importantly, they need to be educated on their responsibility towards the community and how their attitude would affect them at the end of the day.

The journey will not be easy and will take time, but if attempted, these residents may be able to turn their lives around before death claims another innocent life.