After spending 1,000 days in tents, it appears that Taman Permata flat residents in Dengkil can finally see light at the end of the tunnel.

They are pinning their hopes on a collaboration between the Selangor and federal governments, in a town about 15km away from the heart of Putrajaya, which will give them homes to live in.

Anyone who visits them now can see that hope in their eyes.

The three silver canopy tents glisten amid the Dengkil sunshine. Despite the humid atmosphere inside these tents, the flat-dwellers were smiling.

That includes Taman Permata Dengkil flats committee secretary Kumaran Nagurusamy, who could not hide his excitement.

The hard work by the 46-year-old and his committee members over the years is beginning to pay off.

After 16 years of enduring the cracking and trembling pillars at his home, Kumaran is thankful of the possibility of moving his wife and their three children to a new terrace house in Ampar Tenang, situated only 4km away.

Yesterday, Kumaran proudly sat by as committee adviser and activist S Arutchelvan (who is also a supreme council member of Parti Sosialis Malaysia, left in photo above ) announced that the Selangor government has allocated 40 acres of land for a terrace house development for the affected Dengkil flat residents.

According to the agreement inked between the state government and the Urban Wellbeing, Housing and Local Government Ministry, the federal government agency has until July 14, 2016 (under the 5A Notice) to commence construction on the agreed-upon terrace houses.

Kumaran voiced hope that his new home will be ready in three years’ time.

“What’s an extra two to three years compared to the 16-year wait my family had to endure?

“Some families in these flats (of 400 households) have been suffering from cracks and trembling from the building’s instability for 22 years,” he added.

Yesterday’s event marked the more than 1,000 days that Kumaran and his neighbours have camped outside of their houses.

He could still recall vividly the day Taman Permata residents were sent running out of their homes in 2013.

“My children and wife felt the walls shaking and the pillars cracking. And we ran out,” Kumaran recalled.

As the building trembled, its residents found a temporary respite outside.

“We (along with other affected neighbours) have been living in tents provided by the Sepang municipal council),” he said.

Asked where the toilets are situated, Kumaran pointed to a nearby wooden shed.

“It had just broken down recently. We are trying get help so we can repair it,” he added.

Valuable aid from good samaritans and NGOs

Over the past 1,000 days, Kumaran said, his family and his neighbours have received valuable aid from good samaritans and NGOs like Jaringan Rakyat Tertindas (Jerit), in the form of food and amenity contributions.

Kumaran and the other residents also expressed hope that in the coming three years, cooperation between the state and federal governments would endure for the good of the citizens.

He and his family are looking forward to living in their new terrace house.

However, some residents are still staying in their flats.

As this Malaysiakini reporter explored the cracked corridors, children could be seen spending their afternoon leisure time playing while their parents were busy with household chores.

The flat dwellers first made the headlines in 2009, 10 years after they were relocated from plantations to make way for Putrajaya.

Then, 50 residents staged a protest over the poor maintenance and deplorable conditions of their flats.

The problems have since then affected about 400 households.