Dap Mp Kelantan Govt Neglected Orang Asli Welfare In Mining Controversy

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Kota Melaka MP Khoo Poay Tiong accused the Kelantan state government of neglecting the welfare of Orang Asli community by granting an iron ore mining license without necessary legal approvals.
ADS“The root cause of this issue is clearly the Kelantan state government, which allowed two mining companies to operate within an Orang Asli settlement,” he said.
Khoo said this yesterday when he received responses to his motion in the Special Chambers of Parliament concerning the suspected heavy metal poisoning of a Temiar community in Kampung Kelaik, Gua Musang, Kelantan.
Kota Melaka MP Khoo Poay TiongA Malaysiakini exposé last December revealed high levels of chromium - a carcinogenic heavy metal - in the blood of one of six Orang Asli villagers whose families have been living downriver from the mines for generations.
“The state government should be held accountable for sidelining the welfare and interests of the Orang Asli in Kelantan,” he said when he received responses from Deputy Rural and Regional Development Minister Rubiah Wang, who was responding for the Department of Orang Asli Development’s (Jakoa).
Although the land had been classified as indigenous land by Jakoa, it was registered under the state government.
Rubiah explained: “The land is designated as ‘tanah adat’ and is gazetted as indigenous reserve land but it’s gazetted under the laws that govern the state authority, specifically Section 62 of the National Land Code (Act 828) where the state secretary serves as the supervising officer.”
Deputy Rural and Regional Development Minister Rubiah WangRubiah said Jakoa was unaware that the two mining companies were issued mining licenses.
“Before an EIA (environmental impact assessment) is approved, Jakoa provides input, but upon cross-checking with Kelantan Enviroment Department (DOE), it was found that Aqua Orion (Sdn Bhd) never received EIA approval for mining operations,” she revealed.
Rubiah also dismissed assertions that Jakoa consented to the mining activities, explaining that the authority to issue mining permits and licenses lied with the state government, as per the Federal Constitution and the National Land Code 1965.
The deputy minister clarified that the issue is unrelated to Jakoa, as the department was not informed of or involved in any activity approvals in the area.
She mentioned that Jakoa oversees over 8,000 hectares of gazetted land to protect the welfare of indigenous residents, but approvals did not go through them unless complaints were received.
ADSNo EIA report
In the exposé, it was revealed that one of the mining contractors, Aqua Orion had been mining for nine years without an approved EIA report.
The other company is Redstar Capital Sdn Bhd.
Both mining operations were halted over suspected heavy metal contamination in nearby rivers, pending investigations.
The other mine, which started in 2009, obtained an EIA a decade later after it became a legal requirement.
Its current mining contractor, Redstar Capital told Malaysiakini it applied a “closed circuit” system with a “zero discharge” concept, complied with all standard effluent limits and never received any complaints from the villagers.
Mining activities require an EIA, prepared by the extraction company and approved by the DOE after public consultation.
The EIA evaluates and mitigates potential environmental harm, ensuring sustainable resource extraction and compliance with laws regulating industrial effluent and waste management.
Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Minister Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad also confirmed an internal investigation into how one mine operated for nine years without an EIA.
State bypassed EIA requirement
Earlier this month, Nik Nazmi confirmed that the state government had issued a mining license despite the company lacking an approved EIA report.
He also confirmed that the ministry was conducting an internal investigation into how an iron ore mine operated for nine years without it.
Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Minister Nik Nazmi Nik AhmadEIA approval falls under the jurisdiction of the DOE, while mining operations are monitored by the Minerals and Geoscience Department, and mining licences are issued by the respective state governments.
However, Nik Nazmi dismissed claims that the state bypassed the EIA requirement because it was governed by an opposition party.
He said EIA reports were a requirement even at the state-level licence approvals stage. - Mkini

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