Hussin Yahya never tires of the view of the playground from his second-floor flat at the low-cost housing in Pandan Utama, Ampang, Selangor.
The 67-year-old retiree, who has been staying at the 12-storey Rumah Pangsa Pandan Utama since 2003, enjoys watching children on swings and teenagers playing futsal on a nearby court while the adults chat on benches. The playground exudes an air of harmony and this sense of well-being can be felt in the rest of the housing area. Hussin feels vindicated as his efforts to change the mindset of his 600-odd fellow flat dwellers have not been in vain, especially as 90% of them previously lived in squatter settlements.
“It was not like this before. People here used to hurl their rubbish to the ground and we had to bear the stench of urine around the place. It was hard to get residents to cooperate.
“It was not like this before. People here used to hurl their rubbish to the ground and we had to bear the stench of urine around the place. It was hard to get residents to cooperate.
“We also had to deal with vandalism. Worse still, we had drug addicts and criminals lurking around so residents didn’t dare to hang out or play in the playground,” the father of five told Bernama.
Hussin said things changed after a joint management body (JMB) was set up in 2015, which opened the eyes of residents on the importance of creating a clean, comfortable and harmonious environment. The impact was more obvious during the Covid-19 pandemic movement control order period when residents went the extra mile to beautify the common areas. They repainted and adorned the graffiti-filled walls with paintings, floral decorations and wallpaper.
Potted plants were placed in the corridors next to lifts and more greenery was added to their playground and futsal court. According to him, the makeover was done by flat dwellers who used their own money. Those who were initially not too keen eventually joined in, inspired by the changes in their surroundings.
To nab residents who commit offences such as disposing of rubbish indiscriminately, and to weed out unsavoury activities, six closed-circuit television cameras have been installed in strategic places such as the lift lobby.
During a recent visit, Rumah Pangsa Pandan Utama looked as spick-and-span as a luxury housing scheme. The lift lobby on the ground floor and the lift corridor on each floor featured a mix of eye-catching wallpaper and decorative panelling. What is more, they had tiled floors and places for people to sit.
Resident Fazilah Jahalil, 58, a homemaker, said none of them were forced to participate in the beautification of the common areas and the cost was according to their budgets.
“The 10th floor where I live was one of the first to be beautified. There are 18 units on my floor and we chipped in whatever amount we could to lay new tiles, paint the walls and put up decorations. Seeing our success, the residents of other floors wished to beautify their areas too using their creativity and did a good job,” she said.
She added that the JMB deserved praise for transforming the housing scheme.
Source: https://www.thestar.com.my/metro/metro-news/2023/07/24/breaking-out-of-unliveable-mould
