The Chief Secretary to the Government Tan Sri Dr Ali Hamsa has been appointed as the new chairman of Perbadanan Perumahan Rakyat 1Malaysia (PR1MA), the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said in a statement
here Tuesday.

According to the statement, the progress of PR1MA was very close to the heart of Ali as he has been a board member of the corporation since 2012 and thus well-versed in PR1MA's operations.

"As chairman of PR1MA, Ali will continue to carry out the mandate given to PR1MA to realise the aspiration of Malaysians in the middle income group to own affordable homes," the statement added.

Ali succeeds Rompin Member of Parliament Tan Sri Dr Jamaluddin Jarjis who was killed in a helicopter crash in Semenyih on April 4.

The statement also said that Tan Sri Shukry Mohd Salleh, the Principal Private Secretary to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, has been appointed as a new board member of PR1MA.

Meanwhile, PR1MA chief executive officer Datuk Mutalib Alias said all at PR1MA welcomed the new appointments and would work diligently to carry out its mandate to build affordable homes for the people.