Blame game on Kg Buah Pala continues
(The Edge) GEORGE TOWN: While most of the houses at Kampung Buah Pala have already been flattened by developer Nusmetro Ventures (Penang) Sdn Bhd, the blame game on who sealed the villagers fate' remains.
After the salvo fired by Penang Gerakan chairman Datuk Dr Teng Hock Nan that it was the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) government who finalised the land deal after the final premium was paid by the developer, Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng reiterated his challenge to an open debate with former Chief Minister Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon on the matter.
In a statement, Lim said Barisan Nasional (BN) and Gerakan, especially Teng must show proof or stop their shocking lies that the Penang PR government finalised the village land deal and sold Kampung Buah Pala to Koperasi Pegawai Pegawai Kanan Kerajaan Pulau Pinang.
"No amount of false reports by their 'character assassins' will convince Penangites that BN and Gerakan government did not rob the Kampung Buah Pala residents of their land.
"The declassification of exco minutes on July 9 shows that the BN state government under Koh was principally culpable for alienating their land twice to the cooperative during exco meetings on Aug 18, 2004 and June 8, 2005 without consulting the residents.
"The land was alienated by BN at a ridiculously low land premium of RM10 per square feet (when the market rate then was at least RM50 psf) with unanimous support from all MCA, Gerakan, UMNO and MIC state exco members including Teng," he said.
e said Teng has never repented and apologised for his part and Gerakan or BN’s role in selling out the Kampung Buah Pala residents of their land to the cooperative at such cheap rates and without consulting them.
"He is now blaming the PR state government for robbing the Kampung Buah Pala residents of their lands, a classic case of 'the thief shouting thief'.
"After losing their land which was 'robbed' from them by BN, the BN land robbers treated them as illegal squatters with no rights to own their land.
"The exco minutes showed that BN had offered a RM75,000 flat unit to Kampung Buah Pala residents and unlike their harsh treatment the PR state government treated the residents as landowners who were allowed to stay by the original British landlord nearly 150 years ago.
"We worked hard to compel the developer to offer a double-storey terrace house with 99 years lease to the residents worth RM600,000. This successful compensation by the PR state government to gain recognition for Kampung Buah Pala residents to remain as legal rightful landowners, which is widely recognised as the best in Malaysian history," Lim said.
He said once the decision of the BN state exco had been conveyed by approval letters for land alienation and development orders sent out to the cooperative and the developer, the state government was legally bound and there was nothing the new PR government could do as it was bound by the decisions approved by BN.
"I challenge the BN to deny the fact that they had issued numerous letters of eviction to the residents when they were in power.
"If BN And Gerakan are so innocent, why is it that Koh dares not take up his own challenge for an open public debate with me on national television?" Lim questioned.
Lim said even though the land was transferred by the present government on March 27, 2008, he was advised by the state legal adviser and also DAP national chair and MP for Bukit Gelugor Karpal Singh that the PR state government was powerless to legally stop this as it was a consequential administrative action following the approvals given by the previous BN administration.
"This is just like the Jelutong Expressway concession agreement. The state government is bound to allow land reclamation and issuance of land title based on the previous BN government approvals," he added.
He said the only solution to save Kampung Buah Pala was to forcibly acquire the land which would cost the state more than RM 100 million to save 24 houses which would be unfair to the 1.5 million Penangites.
