KUALA LUMPUR – Pythons slithering through houses and monitor lizards darting across roads have become a common sight for the residents of Jalan Awan Kerawang in Taman Yarl, who live in constant worry due to the abandoned land and derelict houses in the area.
Once a peaceful neighbourhood, Taman Yarl has now become a battleground between the encroaching forces of nature and the residents’ desperate pleas for safety and change.
What was once envisioned as a thriving area for new homes and businesses has instead become a jungle of its own – a jungle that residents are forced to navigate daily.
Based on a site visit, Scoop identified approximately eight to 10 abandoned plots and houses, with land sizes ranging from around 5,000 sqft to at least 12,500 sqft.
The neighbourhood is also surrounded by several landed properties, condominiums, and a secondary school – SMK Taman Yarl.
Speaking to Scoop, Esther Chia, a volunteer at Rumah Charis – a welfare organisation for senior citizens established in 1993 – said that pythons and monitor lizards have become a regular occurrence at the centre, with several of the senior citizens being affected.
“Due to the vacant land and abandoned houses in this area, there have been numerous cases of snakes entering nearby houses. A couple of months ago, we had to call the Fire Department because two pythons had entered our centre. We have many senior citizens on the premises and this is not safe.
“We also have many monitor lizards visiting our premises regularly and we have been coexisting with these creatures for years.
“I’m not going to lie – we have also seen several baby pythons roaming the roads near our residence, emerging from the vacant land. Some residents are even afraid to walk on the roads.
“Occasionally, they also hesitate to take their dogs for walks because of this.
Esther expressed her hope for authorities to clean up the land to allow residents to live without the fear of being attacked by the wild reptiles without destroying the animals’ habitat.
“It would be great if the authorities could relocate these animals to a wildlife sanctuary or something similar,” said Esther when met.
Joyce Wong, a resident of a nearby condominium, recounted a traumatising experience in which she spotted what she believe to resemble an adolescent leopard emerging from the abandoned land in the area while jogging.
“I have been living here for 16 years, and I once saw a young ‘leopard’ roaming one of the vacant plots. Because of this, I usually fear going out at night.
“I don’t jog here anymore because of my fear; instead, I usually drive to the Bukit Jalil National Stadium to jog.
“I personally believe that some of these plots could be redeveloped into football fields and sports centres so that people in the area can be more active and engage in sports.
“Having abandoned plots and houses in areas like this doesn’t benefit the community. In fact, I have even seen several drug addicts and undocumented migrants using the abandoned houses,” said Joyce.
Meanwhile, Praveen Menon, who has been a resident for more than 30 years, said that the reason the land remains abandoned is due to the high cost of living and the rising expenses associated with land development.
“Many of these plots have been vacant for the past 30 years, and we are not entirely sure who the developers and owners are. However, I believe that some of the land is privately owned and was purchased by individuals many years ago, but has been left undeveloped as the cost of developing land or building houses here has increased year by year.
“The price per square foot in this area is above RM300, and the average size of the abandoned land is over 12,500 sqft. The area where we live is beautiful, and it is disappointing to see these vacant plots around us, as it makes us feel like we’re living in a jungle.
“There are also many mosquitoes due to the empty land, despite regular fogging activities in the area.
“The residents’ council here has also given up, as they don’t know how to proceed with the vacant land. I hope that by reading this, the developers and landowners will be encouraged to begin construction or at least sell the land to those who want to build homes in this area,” said Praveen.
Further investigation by Scoop revealed that one of the plots – marked with a project development signage and slated for construction by developer D Legend LCD & HIFI Sdn Bhd in 2018 – remains abandoned with no progress made.
Scoop has contacted Seputeh MP Teresa Kok for her comments on the plight of her constituents. – December 22, 2024