MALAYSIA risks losing more of its forests if the Federal Government continues to “bully” the Kelantan state government by giving it “peanuts” to stay afloat, a lawmaker warned.
Speaking in Parliament yesterday (July 18), Subang MP Wong Chen said this has been the case since PAS spiritual leader Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat was appointed as the Kelantan menteri besar in 2004.
“Yes, Subang has no forests, but my hometown is in Kota Bharu, Kelantan, where the state government’s forest exports are extremely important to get revenue for its operating costs.
“Therefore, the Federal Government cannot continue this decades-long practice of bullying the Kelantan state government,” the PKR leader said while debating the National Forestry (Amendment) Bill 2022 in the Dewan Rakyat.
Wong Chen said if Kelantan did not get adequate funds from Putrajaya’s coffers, then the state government will “continue to be pressed to open up its forests”.
On the other hand, if the state government had enough fiscal funds, it could contribute to the protection of the country’s forests and make them more sustainable.
“Therefore, while I support this amendment to give more powers to the Federal Government, it should also provide a fiscal commitment to give the necessary funds to states that (rely on) forest exports (for revenue), like Sabah, Sarawak, Pahang and Kelantan.
“This is so that state governments won’t green light additional logging concessions,” he said.
A national matter
Even though the management of forests falls under state purview, climate change has shown that forest protection is of the utmost importance, and so the Federal Government needs to do more to “flex its muscles”.
“Forestry needs to be a national issue and not just a state matter,” he said. “This issue is a frontline issue when it comes to national sustainability.”
Meanwhile, Wong Chen spoke out against cutting down forests and converting them into oil palm plantations, saying this practice has to be stopped.
For forest farming, however, there is still “some room” to do it in the interest of the economy, but it must be done in a sustainable and controlled manner.
The National Forestry (Amendment) Bill 2022 was unanimously passed by a voice vote in the house yesterday evening, Malaysiakini reported. The Bill now goes to the Dewan Negara.
Wong Chen’s remarks come in the wake of the recent floods in Baling, Kedah, which has been linked to the clearing of the Gunung Inas forest reserve for a Musang King durian farm project.
On July 4, flash floods and a water surge devastated the area, killing three and displacing over 1,000 villagers.
Energy and Natural Resources Minister Datuk Seri Takiyuddin Hassan has since said that no active logging activity was reported in the forest reserve area that could have caused the flash floods. – July 19, 2022
