Foreigners will be barred from buying properties in a planned US$100-billion city, Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said yesterday, after the huge development aimed at Chinese buyers sparked widespread criticism.
Forest City, an “eco-city” of high-rises and waterfront villas, will sit on four artificial islands in the southern state of Johor.
The development, designed to house 700,000 people, is being built by Hong Kong-listed Country Garden and a firm partly owned by Johor’s sultan, and is due to be completed by 2035.
It was developed with wealthy Chinese buyers in mind, but Mahathir, who has already axed multi-billion dollar deals struck with Beijing by the former government, said foreigners would not be allowed to buy properties in the project.
“One thing is certain, that city that is going to be built cannot be sold to foreigners,” he said. “We are not going to give visas for people to come and live here.
“Our objection is because it was built for foreigners, not built for Malaysians. Most Malaysians are unable to buy those flats,” he said.
Many Malaysians had been unhappy with the project as it was clearly aimed at wealthy foreign buyers, and there were also concerns that it could damage the environment.
Country Garden Pacificview Sdn Bhd, the joint venture that is building Forest City, said it had contacted Mahathir’s office seeking clarification of his comments.
Chinese buyers make up about two-thirds of the owners of the Forest City apartments that have been sold so far, with 20 percent from Malaysia and the rest from 22 other countries.
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