JOHOR BARU, Oct 4 — Fed up with waiting over 10 years, several homebuyers of Taman Seri Molek Perdana Apartments here are mulling legal action against the developer and Syarikat Perumahan Negara Berhad (SPNB) for the uncompleted housing project.

Homebuyer Roslylee Abu Bakar said the project has stalled for over 10 years and she was tired of being given the runaround by the developer and SPNB.

"This home was bought by my late husband and he started paying for it since November 2010 while he was still alive.

"Since his passing, we have been paying the installment of RM800 a month until now. If we don't pay, the bank will start blacklisting the buyer's name.

"Currently I have to pay RM750 a month for a house in Kampung Melayu. This is a burden on me as I am no longer working. so, every month I have to pay the installments of the house as well as the rental house,” the 54-year-old told reporters outside Menara Tabung Haji today.

Roslylee was there with several other disgruntled homebuyers and Pasir Gudang MP Hassan Abdul Karim, as well as Pulai PKR chief Jimmy Puah Wee Tse, to hand a memorandum of their grievance to SPNB representatives.

Construction work on the Taman Seri Molek Perdana Apartments project, which was managed by SPNB, began in 2010 and was supposed to be completed in May 2013. The apartment project, which was supposed to have six blocks totalling 972 units, on 8.5 hectares of land were sold for between RM50,000 and RM250,000 each.

The homebuyers have been regularly highlighting their case in the media almost every two years since 2017, urging SPNB and the developer to complete the apartments. It is understood that the project has changed developers over three times, starting with SPNB, before being sold to a private developer Cosmic Master Development Sdn Bhd in 2015 and at present to a subcontractor company, Hong Xin Construction Sdn Bhd.

In July, Johor Housing and Local Government Committee chairman Datuk Mohd Jafni Md Shukor promised to deliver the keys to the homebuyers in stages from August, starting with Blocks A, B and C.

However, the handover did not take place.

Roslylee said several homebuyers also plan to file a complaint with the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) to investigate the housing project.

Another homebuyer, See Sock Chin, echoed Roslylee saying many of them were tired of getting excuses for every delay as it lengthened their mortgage payments for a home they could not live in.

"I have been paying RM221 in monthly installments for this house since 2013 until today. At the same time, I also have to pay RM350 a month for a rented house in Taman Johor Jaya,” said the 50-year-old factory worker, who is also a disabled.

Ramli Yusof, 38, claimed that homebuyers have given false hopes and promises every time. He said all they wanted as homebuyers was a definite answer as to when their apartment units can actually be occupied.

"At year end, the developers and SPNB make various promises that are never fulfilled. We have used all available channels to voice out our problems, including to the minister involved, but there does not seem to be a solution,” he said.

Ramli said the homebuyers were left in a quandary as the federal minister and state executive councillor in charge of housing have changed over the years.

He said his home loan installments came up to RM700 a month and he also rents a house at RM1,000 a month in Permas.

"We hope that the memorandum’s submission today will be the last chance we have to solve this problem,” he said.

MP Hassan who is from PKR said he will raise the homebuyers’ problem in the Dewan Rakyat and meet current Housing and Local Government Minister Datuk Seri Reezal Merican Naina Merican to find a solution.

SPNB representatives later told reporters that a new contractor will be appointed and that homebuyers can forward their grievances to its Johor office.