Kampung Buah Pala folks were grinning from ear to ear today after receiving keys to their new houses given as compensation from Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng.

KBP crowd The 24 families who were evicted in 2009 to pave the way for a high rise development project received their "gifts" ahead of Deepavali which falls on Oct 26.

Fifteen of the families are Indians, while the remaining nine are Malay, with some having lived on the 2.6ha land for 50 to 100 years.

Zainal Rosidi, a retired policeman, who had lived there for about half a century, expressed happiness at being able to finally move into his new home.

The father of nine, who is in his 70s, said he did not think he would be able to receive such a benevolent offer if the BN government was ruling the state.

"As far as I know, evicted residents were compensated only with money, and the offer was usually not satisfactory. We hope to move in as soon as possible," he told Malaysiakini .

NONE However, the families will still have to wait as the homes still lack electricity and water.

Sweating under the sweltering heat, the residents sat for about two hours under white canopies to hear hot pre-election speeches by DAP leaders - Deputy Chief Minister II P Ramasamy ( left ), Bukit Gelugor MP Karpal Singh and Seri Delima assemblyperson RSN Rayer.

In his speech, Lim said that some had described the state government's offer of a 1,200 sq ft double-storey terrace house with a built up area of 1,400 sq feet and a 99 year lease to the residents as "too generous".

He added that critics said that the state had set "a dangerous precedent" especially when no BN or any government had made such an offer.

"However there are special circumstances for Kampung Buah Pala in that they were allowed by the original landowner to live there during the British colonial days before the land reverted to the government," said Lim.

"Even BN and Umno have conceded that the residents have been staying there over 120 years. With a history of over 100 years old, Kampung Buah Pala must still exist," he added.

Tamil High Chapparal

The village, known as Tamil High Chapparal, sits on prime land in the heart of the rapidly developing Gelugor area.

It was demolished in 2009 despite fierce protests by the residents after a Federal Court decision ruled that the land must be vacated to allow developer Nusmetro Sdn Bhd to redevelop the site.

Nine of the 24 families, led by the Kg Buah Pala Residents Association chief M Sugumaran, had refused to sign the agreement to obtain the houses, criticising the state for not providing the villagers with proper compensation packages.

Lim guan eng at Buah Pala house handover Lim  ( left, in green ) refuted their accusations, saying it was the previous BN government had alienated the land twice to Koperasi Pegawai Kerajaan Pulau Pinang on Aug 18, 2004 and June 8, 2005 without consulting the residents.

Worse, he added, the land was alienated by BN at a ridiculously low land premium of RM10 per square feet.

Lim ( left ) said after losing their land which was "robbed" from them by BN, the latter treated the residents as illegal squatters with no rights to own their land.

"Our offer is a successful effort by the Pakatan state to gain recognition for Kampung Buah Pala residents to remain as legal rightful landowners and not as illegal squatters," he added.

Meanwhile, during his speech, Ramasamy said the Kampung Buah Pala controversy was a golden opportunity for BN to topple the state government.

Had the DAP leaders and the state had defied the Federal Court order which decided that residents had to vacate the land, they would be thrown into prison, he added.

"The entire state government would be dismissed," he said, adding he was aware that the issue will be used as an issue in the election campaign by BN, especially by the MIC and Human Rights Party to pull the Indian votes from Pakatan.

"There were mysterious forces trying to bring down the state government with this issue but fortunately, we manage to avert this major political disaster," he added.