Tabung Haji cancels plan to sell TRX land, wants to develop apartments instead

Lembaga Tabung Haji (TH) has cancelled its plan to sell the Tun Razak Exchange (TRX) land after Members of Parliament from both sides had agreed that the land should not be sold.

Instead, TH chairman Datuk Seri Abdul Azeez Rahim said it will be developing residential apartments on the RM177.5 million worth of land by its subsidiary company, TH Properties.

According to Abdul Azeez, the gross development value (GDV) is estimated to cost RM820 million.

"The land has increased from the date it was purchased, from RM177.5 million to about RM250 million now. When we brought it up to Parliament, not just the BNBBC but the Opposition also told not to sell it," he told a press conference after Tabung Haji's announcement of its annual bonus here, Thursday.

He added that the value for TRX which was RM2,700 per sq ft has now gone up to about RM3,100 per sq ft.

On May 9, TH had decided to sell the land on the advice of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak in respecting the sensitivities of TH depositors.

However, at the recent Dewan Rakyat sitting, some lawmakers including non-Muslims who touched on the TH land issue, opined that TH should reconsider its plan to resell the land as they believed it was a good investment.