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PM: Impose stiffer
penalties against greedy developers
The Star 5/2/2003 BY SA’ODAH ELIAS
PUTRAJAYA:
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Mahathir Mohamad has suggested stiffer
penalties, including a jail sentence, against those who disregard the
environmental laws for profit.
He said that unless the law was changed
to include a jail sentence against greedy developers, such acts like the
levelling of hills in Cameron Highlands would continue unabated.
“The law will be effective if there is a
provision for stiffer penalties, including a jail sentence. If the
provision only provides for fines, it will never be effective,” he told
reporters after opening the Taman Botani in conjunction with Putrajaya's
second anniversary as a Federal Territory here yesterday.
He said the Government would also look
at how environmental laws under the jurisdiction of the Department of
Environment could be made to apply on state governments which governed
land matters in their respective states.
It was reported that the Cameron
Highlands district office had lodged a police report on Saturday against
contractors for illegally using heavy machinery to clear and develop an
eight-hectare piece of land on the hill station.
In his opening speech, Dr Mahathir said
he was disturbed when he read about the use of heavy machinery to level
hills in Cameron Highlands.
He said the activities and the felling
of trees had reduced the area to look no different from other flatland.
Dr Mahathir said indiscriminate
levelling of hills on the highlands had not only affected their
environmental beauty but would also cause the temperature to increase.
“We are very sad with what happened in
Cameron Highlands as the area now looks more like a flatland rather than a
highland. This is the work of greedy developers who are only concerned
with profits.
“I don’t understand why they chose a
hilly area to develop their projects,
level the hills and cut down all the
trees. If that is what they planned to do, then they should just stick to
areas that have already been levelled.
“People go to highlands to enjoy the
beautiful scenery but if all the hills and trees have been cut, there is
no longer any difference between such areas and other areas in the
country,” he added.
Dr Mahathir said a smart developer would
try to retain most of the natural beauty and environment of the area it
planned to develop as that would guarantee a very good value for the
property.
Praising the good work of Putrajaya
Holdings in balancing the need to protect the environment and the
development of land, Dr Mahathir said:
“With the sensitivities shown by
Putrajaya Holdings in planting trees to replace most of the oil palm trees
that needed to be cleared for development, Putrajaya has remained green.”
He said that with 13 public parks,
including Taman Botani, Putrajaya held the record for having so many parks
although it spanned only an area of 4,500ha.
On the garden, Dr Mahathir said it could
be turned into a learning centre for the people, especially those who were
not well versed about the country’s rich source of flora and fauna.
“Ours is a tropical country boasting of
many types of plants, but sadly some have become extinct. This garden can
provide an avenue for people to learn about the abundant plant species
that we have,” he added.
In Kuantan, Mentri Besar Datuk Seri
Adnan Yaakob said the company had repeatedly flouted conditions stipulated
by the Cameron Highlands land office concerning the clearing of the
slope.
“In fact the company had been fined
RM2,000 for violating the conditions by bringing heavy machinery and not
covering the slope with tarpaulin to prevent soil erosion,” he said.
The company bought 26ha of land from
another company and 11ha had been cleared to plant tomatoes.
“However, after flouting the conditions
for the second time, the land office issued an immediate stop-work order
on Jan 30.
“This order is supported by the Pahang
Government until further notice and work will only be allowed to resume
after the conditions are met,” he told reporters yesterday.
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