“This is a long outstanding issue because the original proposed alignment (of MRT3) will involve a major part of Pandan, including two residential areas, Taman Kencana and Taman Bakti.

“It will affect thousands of people, and it’s not just about the (MRT) construction. It is a case of residential properties having to be demolished,” Rafizi told reporters after the first Pandan Townhall of 2023.

Rafizi assured residents that there were ways to realign the MRT3 route without needing to demolish residential buildings.

“So, that is basically what I will pursue with MRT Corp and the authorities.

“As much as I understand that the project has been approved and will take place, I don’t see how we can justify taking away the homes of people who’ve been there for 30 to 40 years,” Rafizi said.

He also said that while he had already informally spoken to transport minister Loke Siew Fook on the matter, he will be officially reaching out to the latter’s ministry in the coming weeks.

“I will write to them (transport ministry) officially to state my stand as Pandan MP, so that alignments do not involve residential homes,” he said.

On Dec 31, Rafizi met residents from Taman Kencana and Taman Bakti to listen to their recommendations and to convey their concerns to the transport ministry in the hope that it will have minimal impact on their neighbourhood.

The 50.8km MRT3 is the final stretch in the Kuala Lumpur urban rail network.

According to the MRT Corp website, the track will run along the perimeter of Kuala Lumpur and will be connected to the existing MRT, LRT, KTM and Monorail lines through 10 interchanges.