Hindu rights movement Hindraf followed this up with the suggestion to turn the event into a three-cornered debate.
Gerakan Youth chose the village as the venue for the proposed debate, and mooted a date and time - Oct 4 at 8.30pm.
The movement chief Oh Tong Keong today handed an invitation letter for the open debate to the chief minister through Lim's special assistant Ong Beng Guat at Komtar.
In an immediate response, Lim rejected the invitation saying that it was inappropriate for him to debate the issue with Gerakan Youth leaders.
He said he preferred to debate Gerakan president and former chief minister Koh Tsu Koon.
Lim and Penang Gerakan chairperson Dr Teng Hock Nan has been involved in an on-going public spat over who was to be blamed in the Kampung Buah Pala fiasco.
Teng accused the DAP government of finalising the land deal and selling off the village land to Koperasi Pegawai Pegawai Kanan Kerajaan Pulau Pinang without resolving the residents' predicament.
He said the previous Barisan Nasional government had inserted a contractual clause in the land deal compelling the landowner and developer to settle all issues pertaining to compensation, relocation and resettlement of the affected residents.
The Gerakan leader accused Lim of not complying with the clause when he effected the transfer of the village land title to the cooperative society on March 27 last year.
Lim: Koh a 'land robber'
Lim in return has accused that the previous government of being the real culprit behind the fiasco and described Koh as a “land robber”.
In its invitation letter, the Gerakan Youth stated that the debate be conducted in Bahasa Malaysia to allow all parties, including the village's residents committee, former residents, political parties, civil society groups and general public, to fully follow the discussion.
He also dared Lim to reveal his administration's executive council meeting minutes pertaining to the village land deals.
H'ng said the village was chosen as the debate venue was appropriate and ideal given that “Lim has never set foot in Kampung Buah Pala.”
“If Lim is brave enough to accept this challenge, he will be meeting our youth members at the debate. We have sufficient information and qualification to take him on in this matter," he told journalists after handing over the invitation letter.
H'ng said Lim should not be debating Koh as the Gerakan president was no longer active in local politics.
"Let us take Lim on," he said, adding that Lim should accept the challenge to show he had the guts to tackle the party's youth wing.
The developer and landowner have since early this month begun demolishing the houses in Kampung Buah Pala early this month after the villagers agreed to leave in return for compensation.
Lim said he wanted to debate the issue with Koh although he was not an elected representative and had even lost to Deputy Chief Minister P Ramasamy by some 10,000 votes in Batu Kawan parliamentary contest in the last general election.
'I respect him as the Gerakan president and would like to debate with him over the issue. If Koh dare not debate by himself and sends his assistants instead, I don't think that's the quality of a leader," he said, recalling that it was Koh who debated him on another land matter last year.
Hindraf wants in too
Meanwhile, the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) wants to be included should the debate materialise.
Hindraf national advisor N Naragan said it was important that civil movement be given the chance to argue their side of story over the whole Kampung Buah Pala imbroglio.
He said among the questions that Hindraf would seek clarification are:
- Was the government right in allowing the demolition of Kampung Buah Pala?
- Was there any heritage lost in the destruction of the village?
- Did the villagers deserve what they got?
- Was the demolition of Kampung Buah Pala unavoidable?
- Were there other social or moral issues - and not just legal and commercial issues - involved in the village demolition?
by Poor Indian
LG, do not fpuck around just cos u got angry over this KBP issue. Are you another goons from umno or mic trying to throw oil on his issue. If you are an umno/mic goons i can accept that you just been malicious. Bu if you are a member of the marginlised ordinary man on the street, then I said you are a real stupid indian who do have the slight sense of rationalisation. Indian like you is going to cause more hardship for other indians. So i say to you "porah"
by LG
PORR is the next issue where we are going to see LGE's deceit at work again ....watch closely
by 1penang
Who are these Oh & H'ng to call for a debate against CM, and a stupid excuse that KSK should not be involved as he is "no longer active in local politics" speaks volumes of the kind of maturity and mentality of these so-called party leaders....I wonder how many members are still in the Gerakan youth as your Gerakan President is now "more active in national or international or foreign politics....any difference!
by LG
Again kapitan lge is beginning to show his deceiving tactics in the tanjung bungah case. He now says the zoning map from the previous government is the authoritative document for determining the prmary corridor boundary. it is all so convenient for this conniving and deceiving CM. I wonder how long his party can last.
by LG
Kgen, Lim Guan Eng lies through his bloody nose. He lies, he twists, he deflects, he is devious - why don't you say something about all of that, you appear to know a lot. But I guess like everything else you write about, your approach will be selfserving and totally bankrupt of anything intelligent. DAP is nothing but a treacherous and chauvinist party now masquerading as a multi racial party by having some stupid window dressing mandores. Why don't you write about that. You surely must know about the inside thinking within DAP on these issues, the real inside thinking. Let us see some of that please.
LGE, please don't waste time anymore with this issue. Gerakan just making noise so people will think they are still relevant. Just get on with governing the rest of Penang.
by truth
guan eng pls be man enough to accept d challenge. bn governm maybe d robber but pkr took d bal ill gotten $, finalised d robbery. if lge is righteous, it doesnt matter who debates with him as long as he/she represents d previous bn governm. v know koh is hopeless which is why penangites voted out bn. lge pls dont kept challenging koh unless lge thinks he is only better than koh. it shd be a 4 party debate to include d residents of kbp. give them a chance to present their side of d story. let d rakyat be d final judge.
by kgen
The blinkered Hindraf supporters who say Hindraf isn't a political party refuse to acknowledge Uthaya's HRM (Hindu Rights Party) as the same coin as Hindraf, just the other side. Hindraf and HRM must continue to bash PR for their political survival to pull support from PR to their own party. If Hindraf isn't a political party what is it, an NGO? What has Hindraf done for Indian? Has it started any social or welfare program, done any studies or surveys to help Indians? Has the 2 brothers even stepped into an estate? All that they do is threaten and demand in the most emotional way possible like half-baked politicians and playing on emotional issues like Tamil schools and Hindu temples. I think most Indians except the hardcore here can see through Waytha and Uthaya as taking them for a ride.
by kgen
Waytha, where is the lawsuits you wanted to file against the DAP Indian reps who asked you to account for the money collected? No guts to file lawsuits means their allegations must be true. Shame on you for using the money collected from poor and marginalized Indians for your extended London holiday.
by LG
Hindraf is not even a political party, so what nonsense is this Kgen guy talking about, milking Kg Buah Pala for the last drop of political mileage. If DAP/PR and UMNO/Gerakan are not responsible for this fiasco, then why worry about what damage Hindraf can do in the debate. It is only when there is fear of something that the parties concerned will use the lamest of excuses to prevent an open and inclusive debate. On another point about Kgen's way of discussion, only individuals who are bankrupt of ideas for an intelligent debate will use petty nonsense like Kgen's nonsense.Using his logic, LGE is a chip off the old racist LKS and they father and son, both are living off Malaysians charity who pay their salaries ..now how does that sound, nor how does that help. The sword cuts both ways. So please cut out that kind of nonsense, argue intelligently.
by ISMI
As usual LGE shall manipulate the situation to skirt his responisibility to debate;rather in advocating the proof of the pudding is in the eating and for the sake of this wantom moron and his norm of comprehension and understanding i reiterate here again ; Action Speaks Louder Than Word Bloke! Enough your bullshit mate especially to the naive Malaysian Indians.
by kgen
Hindraf should stay out of this. Hasn't it already milked Kg. Buah Pala for the last drop of political mileage? Whenever this racist body gets involved it turns everything into an ugly racial affair. Hindraf doesn't bother about the poor Indians it just want to promote its 2 brothers as champions of Indians and live on their charity. Why should Lim even acknowledge this banned extremist organization?
by Kumara
Does Koh Tsu Koon have the guts !!!
by RK
shan, its private project, just like any housing project. it only benefits the buyer and the seller.
by Shan
I wonder whether Guan Eng have the guts to debate on this issue.
by Shan
Also add this question......Does the project benefits the poor in any case?
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