Forest City not giving free condos to foreigners, says MB (Updated)

KOTA ISKANDAR: Forest City is not giving away free condominium units to investors in China, Mentri Besar Datuk Osman Sapian said today.
"There are people who claim that if you buy a property in China, you can get one free in Malaysia," he said in response to Economic Affairs Minister Mohamed Azmin Ali's comment on Saturday.
The developer of Forest City, Country Garden Pacificview Sdn Bhd (CGPV), has also denied this, according to Osman.
Construction at the Forest City will continue despite the recent uncertainty, he said.
"All transactions in Forest City were made within the country, and the federal and state government have received millions in taxes from the mega projects."
"Any purchase is subjected to the Housing Development (Control and Licensing) Act 1966, where buyers must sign the sales and purchase agreement as set out in the schedule.
"Any transaction must be paid in Malaysia in 13 stages, be it by cash or loan," he said.
Osman said the federal government has received RM390 million in taxes from the mega investments in Forest City so far.
The Johor government obtained RM600 million from land premium and RM30 million from the dividends from CGPV, he added.
Guangdong-based Country Garden Holdings owns 66% of CGPV through Malaysian subsidiaries, while the remaining 34% is owned by the Johor government, state ruler Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar, as well as his associates.
He said, CGPV like any other housing developer, has put in RM2 billion in the Housing Development account under Housing Development Act
"It serves as a sinking fund if the project failed to deliver," he added.
Osman also said the allegation that all construction materials came from China are not true.
To date, Forest City's mega projects have a total investment of RM1.5 billion with 151 local contractors being awarded RM1.4 billion worth of works.
"It also created 1,545 working opportunities, and among them 1,200 are locals. These local workers have contributed RM51 million in income tax for the past few years," he said.
"Despite this there are incorrect reports, but the market sentiment still very positive, for example, Forest City just open its international standard golf course recently."