The Penang Gerakan today said that technically it was the current DAP government, that finalised the village land deal and sold Kampung Buah Pala to the cooperative society - Koperasi Pegawai Pegawai Kanan Kerajaan Pulau Pinang.

NONE Gerakan state chairperson Dr Teng Hock Nan told journalists today that until the general election on March 8 last year, the previous Gerakan-led state government did not finalise the sales and purchase agreement on the land deal signed with the cooperative.

He said the previous government neither transferred the land title to the cooperative society, which effectively meant "the village was still a state land when the DAP-led Pakatan Rakyat took over the state."

"It was the current state government that accepted the land premium of RM2.2 million and transferred the land title on March 27.

"Moreover, the current state government wanted to reclaim a 50 percent discounted amount of the land premium.

"Technically speaking, the current government sold the village land, not us," he told a press conference at the Penang Gerakan headquarters in Georgetown yesterday.

When asked whether the current Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng could have saved the village land for the residents, Teng replied in the affirmative.

"He could have done many things with just a stroke of the pen if he wanted to ... he had the power to do so," stressed the Gerakan leader, while declining to elaborate.

Teng's clarification could shed some light on the public debate over which state government had actually sold Kampung Buah Pala village land.

Another round of controversy

It also could spark another round of controversy surrounding the Kampung Buah Pala fiasco.

The ruined Kampung Buah Pala was also known as Tamil High Chaparral because of its population of cowherds, cattle, goats, livestock and unique Indian cultural features and festivities.

Since Sept 14, the developer's team is working overtime to demolish all homes and flatten the village to pave way for a lucrative condominium project under taken by Nusmetro Venture (P) Sdn Bhd.

NONE The anguished and vanquished residents have been picking and packing up pieces of their belongings and moving out from the village.

However, certain residents are still determined to file civil suits against the developer and even the state government for various criminal damages sustained by them and property.

Teng, who was a senior executive councillor in the former chief minister Koh Tsu Koon's state cabinet, said the previous government alienated the village land for development purposes in early 2007 via the sales and purchase agreement with the cooperative society.

He explained that the previous government however, had included some firm conditions for the cooperative society to fulfil before the state executive council could transfer the land title.

Among the conditions was one that compelled the cooperative society to address and resolve the relocation, resettlement and compensation issue of the residents first before the land title could be ever transferred.

However, he said as of the last general election, the cooperative society had not resolved the residents' problems.

"Thus the land title was never transferred and the previous state government did not finalise the completion of the sales and purchase agreement.

'Washed his hands off'

"The current government transferred the land title even though the cooperative had not fulfilled the demands of the contractual conditions," said Teng.

NONE He also blamed the then opposition DAP and PKR leaders who he said were the main reasons for causing the stalemate between the cooperative and residents to reach an amicable solution.

He said the DAP and PKR leaders entered into the fray and started to champion the residents' cause by convincing them that the village can be preserved and conserved as a heritage land.

"The previous government never promised heritage preservation. It was the Pakatan leaders who made the promise.

"However after being elected, the residents felt cheated and hoodwinked when Pakatan leaders failed to fulfill their promise.

"This was the main reason behind the residents venting their anger and frustration against Lim's government," he said.

Teng also rebuked Lim for ‘washing off his hands' over the village crisis when the residents sought the federal government's help to end their predicament.

"A responsible government should never do that. It should be spot on to resolve people's problems. Lim should not have washed off his hands," he said.