13 in Kg Buah Pala want money instead of house

(The Star) GEORGE TOWN: In yet another twist, 13 households in Kampung Buah Pala want a RM300,000 compensation each from developer Nusmetro Ventures (P) Sdn Bhd instead of a double-storey terrace house.

Village residents association chairman M. Sugumaran said the money would enable them to build a heritage village by themselves on a nearby piece of private land.

“Some well-wishers have come forward to help us secure the land measuring about 2.4ha.

“Since the state government is not honouring its promise to preserve the village as a heritage village, we will use the compensation money to build it ourselves,” he told a press conference yesterday.

Sugumaran said the company had claimed that the cost of building the double-storey house was RM130,000 each and the land for each house costs RM130,000.

“This totals up to RM260,000. We added the RM24,000 rental payment for two years and came up with a round figure of RM300,000.

“We conveyed our proposal to the developer last week and they are expected to give us a reply tomorrow,” he said, adding that it was better to receive a one-off payment instead of waiting two years for the houses to be ready.

“There is a risk waiting that long as we might not get anything,” he said.

Sugumaran said if the developer agreed to their proposal, they promise to leave the place after “settling” with the families living in the households and move out.

“If our proposal does not work out, we will still move out since we have signed the letters to move out, but we will continue to fight from outside,” he said.

Sugumaran denied that the households have accepted the double-storey houses.

Deputy Chief Minister II Dr P. Ramasamy had said that Nusmetro executive director Thomas Chan informed him that about 11 families were interested in accepting the double-storey house deal after the demolition of three houses in the village on Thursday.