KOTA KINABALU: Not all squatter areas in Sabah will be gazetted, said State Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Seri Dr Joachim Gunsalam.
Dr Joachim, who is also the state Local Government and Housing Minister, stated during the recent state assembly sitting that legalising squatter settlements was the most realistic solution to the problem.
It was reported that there are 193 squatter colonies in Sabah and Labuan.
"We cannot gazette all of them. We have to study each squatter area individually to determine if it is feasible for us to do so or not.
"What we are trying to convey is that if there are more than 80 per cent local residents, we have to take action because they are Sabahans," he told the media after a topping-out ceremony for a project here.
He added that there is an ongoing census of those living in squatter areas.
Last year, the state government announced the implementation of digital registration to address the issue of illegal foreigners in Sabah.
Dr Joachim's ministry is also collaborating with the State Civil Service Department and Sabah Maju Jaya Direction Secretariat to establish the Squatter Management Technical Committee, which is responsible for formulating the Sabah Squatter Action Plan.
However, he refused to comment about any immediate plans to address cases of water theft, which is directly related to the issue of squatters.
The water woes in Sabah are partly due to rampant illegal water connections.
Last year, the Sabah State Water Department said it incurred losses between RM150 million and RM180 million per year due to illegal water connections in Sabah.
Sabah Electricity Sdn Bhd has also recorded annual losses of about RM20 million due to power theft.