Association for the Protection of the Natural Heritage of Malaysia (PEKA) president Shariffa Sabrina Syed Akil said Amirudin’s latest statement clearly showed he did not care about the 40,000 objections to the plan.
Shariffa told FMT that many viewed the menteri besar, state leaders and exco members as “arrogant” individuals who are “servants to real estate companies that no longer prioritise the people’s interests” in this issue.
She said they were disappointed by elected representatives in the area, particularly Kuala Langat MP Dr Xavier Jayakumar, for not speaking up enough on defending the forest reserve and protecting the Orang Asli community there.
According to her, Selangor Pakatan Harapan (PH) leaders had also ignored the “aspirations and wishes of the people” when they were in power and part of the government.
Shariffa said Amirudin should have dropped all degazettement plans after the approval of a motion to preserve forest reserves at the state assembly meeting last November.
Meanwhile, community leader Tok Batin Raman Pahat warned that the state government’s decision to carry on with the development project would negatively impact forest life, economic resources and the future of their grandchildren.
“It will affect more than 500 Orang Asli,” he said, adding that they were considering bringing the issue to court.
Raman said the majority of the Orang Asli in the area had decided to reject PH in the next general election because their rights were not protected.
“Even if the area was to be developed, we urge the state government not to ignore the economic well-being of our community. The state budget had provided plans to assist the Orang Asli, but no progress has been made,” he said.
He added that the community was still living in shabby housing conditions without clean water supply or proper roads.
The degazettement of the Kuala Langat North Forest Reserve has been a long standing issue. Last February, FMT reported that about 300 Orang Asli residents held a rally in front of the Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah building to protest against the proposal.
It has also received the attention of environment and water minister Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man, who urged the Selangor government to maintain the forest reserve to ensure environmental sustainability.
Yesterday, a coalition of environmental non-governmental organisations, known as Pertahankan Hutan Simpan Kuala Langat Utara, had also called on the state government to immediately withdraw its proposal.
The coalition said online petitions had received 129,034 signatures while an email campaign hosted by the Greenpeace website had drawn 1,500 emails within two weeks.