The government is committed to providing affordable public housing for disadvantaged people, President Ma Ying-jeou said Oct. 13.
Ma expressed support for social justice in the form of public housing during a meeting with representatives from 12 civic groups, including Eden Social Welfare Foundation and the Organization of Urban Re-s, which in August formed an association promoting public housing.
The president said he recognizes the plight of ordinary citizens in the face of rising housing prices, especially in the greater Taipei area.
In response to the association’s call for the provision of rental housing for the disadvantaged, Ma said the idea is in line with a draft Housing Act, passage of which the government is actively pushing for, and with policy guidelines approved in 2004 detailing ways to meet the housing needs of the populace.
“The president is very supportive of the association’s proposal for public housing rentals, rather than sales,” Minister of the Interior Jiang Yi-huah said.
The president has directed the Ministry of the Interior to meet with government agencies such as the defense and finance ministries to work out a feasible plan and tackle issues of land acquisition, Jiang said.
Meanwhile, the Executive Yuan approved a plan in April to help create a healthy housing market, including measures to adjust land availability for residential housing, increase homebuyers’ purchasing power and regulate real estate mortgages. The plan is now being implemented step by step, according to officials. (THN)