In a statement this evening, she referred to remarks she had made to the media in the afternoon about the air pollution in Pasir Gudang, which had been blamed on toxic waste from a previous case of pollution at Sungai Kim Kim.

“Referring to my statement to the afternoon media on the above, I would like to correct some facts as to the recent updates. The area has been fully cleaned and the accumulated hazardous waste has been taken to the disposal centre for removal,” the statement said.

In the earlier report, the national news agency Bernama had quoted Zuraida as saying that the air pollution in Pasir Gudang was due to chemical waste from Sungai Kim Kim, and that an initial investigation had found that the contractor assigned to clear the waste did not do a thorough job in clearing the hazardous materials.

“As the hazardous materials have been exposed to wind and rain, the uncontrolled airborne substances may have spread and affected people once again,” Bernama quoted Zuraida as saying.