The Malaysian Insight

THE eviction of Malay villagers at the Abdul Cauder wakaf land in Butterworth, Penang, has become a ceramah topic for some Umno politicians in the Semenyih by-election campaign.

President of the Penang Islamic Council (MAINPP), Abdul Malik Abul Kassim, said he is considering legal action against Umno speakers believed to have accused the council, which owns the land, of evicting Malays from their homes in Pakatan Harapan-controlled Penang.

Malik said the issue has been resolved, with the affected residents all accepting compensation.

“I have heard a lot (of what the detractors have claimed). It is very frustrating to hear that all we have done has been ignored.

“They say we threw out people from their kampung… it is slander against the council. We are looking at the possibility of taking them to court over the lies,” he told reporters at MAINPP’s office today.

Malik said some videos of Umno speakers making the allegations have been circulated, adding that he has identified “one or two” people behind them.

Compensation accepted

Last weekend, MAINPP had settled the compensation issue for the more than 40 households in the 2.5 acre village.

Each family will be given a 1,000 sq ft flat to be built on the wakaf land, RM500 monthly rental allowance until the flat is ready, RM4,000 aid to move out of the village, and RM3,500 aid to move into the new flat later.

Malik said all the families have accepted the compensation, and that no changes were made to the package, despite the demand for higher rental allowance.

“Some residents have moved out. Some are in the process of leaving. They have until February 24, this Sunday, to vacate the land.

“We hope that we can have vacant possession of the land by Sunday. We will then fence up the land and start development.

“We expect the process to be smooth from then on,” Malik said, adding that the new flats would take 24 months to complete once construction begins.

Earlier last week, 14 families were still opposing the eviction, arguing that the RM500 rental allowance was too low, asking for the amount to be raised to RM700. They also demanded to see plans of the new flat.

The families also refused to take the compensation because five other households – extended families living on the land – were ineligible for the replacement flats.

But, after further negotiations with MAINPP, the other five families were also offered flats.

Political mileage against PH

Yesterday, Penang Bersatu’s youth wing posted a statement on its Facebook page slamming Umno for using the village eviction issue in the Semenyih by-election to accuse PH of throwing out Malays from wakaf land.

Its chief, Shameer Sulaiman, told The Malaysian Insight that the opposition was spreading lies.

“We understand that MAINPP needs to develop the land. The residents themselves also know that the development will also benefit them in the future,” he said.

“They are not showing the true picture. They are spreading lies, which is unhealthy.”

The village is in Bagan, the parliamentary seat of Finance Minister and DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng, who is also former chief minister of Penang.

A villager from the wakaf land, Zabidi Zainul,  said the eviction and compensation disputes were resolved amicably.

“In the beginning, villagers were not too happy with the way the talks were handled. Police came to the village,” he said of the police round-the-clock surveillance during the stand-off.

“But all the while, we just wanted to resolve the matter in a good way. In the end, everyone agreed with the compensation offer. Every family will get a replacement home.

“Nobody was forced to take the deal,” he told The Malaysian Insight. – February 22, 2019.