Lee (second left) and others at the bus stop which the couple had turned into their living quarters.
MIRI (Aug 12): A couple spotted ‘living’ at a bus stop in Riam here has been determined by the Welfare Department to be not homeless, said state Transport Minister Datuk Lee Kim Shin.
He said even though the couple was nowhere to be found when he and welfare officers visited the said bus stop yesterday, the officers were able to identify the pair from their belongings left unattended there.
“The welfare officers were able to recognise the items as belonging to individuals whom they had dealt with recently. They pointed out that the couple is not homeless.
“The couple is from Bakam. In fact, they had a house built by the government under the hardcore poor housing assistance programme. They were sent back to their house recently after they were found sleeping along five-foot ways in the city centre,” he said in a press statement issued following his visit.
Lee, who is Senadin assemblyman, said he was informed about the couple by members of the public who had spotted the pair ‘living’ at the bus stop.
He then contacted the Welfare Department and accompanied officers to follow up on the matter.
The department will now take the necessary action together with the relevant agencies to resolve the issue, he said.
Accompanying Lee during the visit were Kapitan Jee Kee Hiong and Senadin Service Centre staff.