Galas assemblyman Syahbuddin Hashim said if true, it would contradict the PAS-led state government’s ongoing freeze on new forest exploration approvals.

He claimed that checks on the environment department’s website showed that the state government had approved forest exploration for 54 firms since 2022.

“The approvals were for various purposes, from farms to mines in Gua Musang, and most of them are located in the Ulu Nenggiri area. The approvals were issued from 2022 until this year,” the Nenggiri deputy  by-election director added.

Syahbuddin, who is also state opposition leader, claimed the concessions were given discreetly and that some of the firms were not Bumiputera-owned, were based outside of Kelantan, and had been established for less than a year.

He also claimed that the people of Nenggiri had been forced to bear with the destruction of the constituency’s natural environment for the past 34 years.

FMT has reached out to deputy menteri besar Fadzli Hassan, who holds the natural resources portfolio, for comment.