Kok was referring to Zuraida’s comment at the MPOC’s seminar and dialogue on Jan 5 that orangutan kill people when they see them.
The minister also claimed that Malaysia still had many orangutan, contrary to claims that the palm oil industry was killing the primates.
“I urge Zuraida to examine and scrutinise the green conservation projects under the Malaysian Palm Oil Green Conservation Fund (MPOGCF), and carry them out systematically and with a proper communication strategy in mind,” said Kok, who was primary industries minister under the Pakatan Harapan government.
“This is so that Malaysia can cite some of the impactful projects to counter the untrue accusations against palm oil in many parts of the world,” the Seputeh MP said.
Kok said palm oil and palm-based products ranked among the top 10 in terms of export value for Malaysia, making it an important economic activity and a major contributor to the nation’s GDP.
“If Malaysia, as a major palm oil-producing country, does not devise new and comprehensive strategies to counter worldwide anti-palm oil sentiments, it will surely jeopardise our palm oil industry and hurt millions dependent upon this commodity,” she said.
Kok believed that anti-palm oil sentiments had already spread to parts of the Middle East, so it was not shocking news as mentioned by Zuraida in her speech.
“I hope the experience Zuraida has had in Arab countries will make her understand and adapt my earlier formulated policy of halting and capping the expansion of oil palm plantations in Malaysia.
“I also hope that she utilises the palm oil industry’s generous cess fund under the MPOGCF to replant forest trees and carry out other green conservation projects while caring for the wildlife impacted by these human activities,” she said.
Kok also lamented the slow progress in the replanting of forest trees in the 2,500 hectares of degraded forest in Lower Kawag in Lahad Datu, Sabah, as well as the project to plant more elephant grass and create an elephant-corridor in the northern region of Sabah.
“These well-defined programmes, which already were welcomed by the NGO community and conservationists, were not taken seriously by the former minister, Khairuddin Aman Razali.”
“These projects were also formulated to counter negative perceptions against Malaysia and portray a more caring side of the industry that is currently less known,” she said.
Kok said that if the cess fund was spent without focusing on critical areas where human and wildlife conflicts were happening, the ministry would be seen as carrying out conservation projects without strategies.
“It will be difficult for the ministry or Malaysian palm oil industry players to then boast about the environment and wildlife conservation efforts in Malaysia,” she said.