RANAU: District Officer Jumain Abd Ghani urged villagers in Kg Bongkud and Kg Namaus to be calm over reports of plans to prospect for gold and Non Radioactive – Rare Earth Elements (NR-REE) in the area.
This followed a meeting among department heads, PPM representatives, village heads and company representatives.
“The meeting was aimed finding out from the company its plan to search for minerals in the village.
“Heads from the Environment Department, Health Office, Minerals and Geosciences Department, PPHT and PDRM gave their views,” he said.
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According to Jumain, the company was studying the mineral content under the soil and it had yet to reach the stage of mining.
“The company was asked to accurately identify the spot to be studied. They must refer to the PPHT to determine the owner of the land involved,” he said.
On Sunday, hundreds of villagers in the Bongkud and Namaus areas voiced their objection to a private company said to be opening a gold mine in their villages.
The Temporary Chairman of the Protest Committee, Pita Yusuf, told the third meeting that the protest aimed to defend their environment.
The areas involved include agricultural land, housing, plantations, schools, clinics, clean water catchment areas as well as nearby river ‘bombon’ (Tagal) areas and many more.
“The residents of Kg Bongkud, Kg Namaus and several other villages close to Bukit Tompong are worried.
“We strongly object to the efforts of the prospecting company that intends to conduct mining at Bukit Tompong near our village,” said Pita.
A resident, [email protected] Bin Hamid feared any mining would destroy the clean water catchment area, plantation land and crops owned by the residents.
According to him, drilling operations clearly violate what is outlined in the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and will cause the ecosystem and surrounding land to be used as a machinery route.
He added that the drilling site involved will also be an area that will no longer be used as a location for agricultural activities even if the residents are paid compensation.
Another villager said the residents do not want to be affected a second time as the Mamut copper mining fiasco left bitter memories, especially in Kg Bongkud, Kg Namaus and surrounding areas.
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