Kota Kinabalu: Kampung Sungai Pahu-Lokan farmers in Kinabatangan won a reprieve at the eleventh hour after the Sabah Lands and Surveys Department agreed to postpone a demolition following an appeal by land claimants.
Pertubuhan Kemanusiaan Masyarakat Antarabangsa Malaysia (MHO) Sabah Chief Operating Officer Jerry Jaimeh said Sabah Lands and Surveys Director Datuk Sr Chua Ming Ling @ Alan had confirmed the postponement.
“He (Chua) has confirmed that the demolition notice for Kg Sungai Lokan residents has been postponed,” Jerry told a media conference after a gathering of fewer than 60 residents outside Wisma Tanah dan Ukur Sabah at about 10.30am on Tuesday.
“A dialogue session will be held next week between MHO, the villagers and the Agriculture Department, chaired by the Lands and Surveys Department,” he added.
The gathering, comprising MHO representatives and land claimants from Kinabatangan and Kota Belud, handed over a third follow-up letter requesting a dialogue with the Lands and Surveys Director.
Chua came out to meet the residents personally, received the letter and took time to answer questions directly from the villagers.
The gathering lasted less than 30 minutes. Tanjung Aru Police Station Chief SI Zairey Lee and his team were also at the scene to ensure law and order throughout the handover.
Jerry said the 71 farmers and smallholders had cultivated the land, including with oil palm, for more than 20 years.
“A notice under Section 173(1)(h) of the Sabah Land Ordinance (Cap 68) had set Sept 9 for enforcement action,” he said.
He said the Agriculture Ministry demolished about 200 acres of oil palm on the land in July last year, prompting the villagers to seek MHO’s help.
“The MHO wrote to the ministry seeking dialogue but got no response for a year, until a notice last month gave residents one month to vacate,” he said.
“A lawyer for the farmers sought a postponement, and MHO wrote to the Lands Department on July 28 and Aug 28 seeking a meeting, but received no reply either time.
“We are not against development and we are not against the law. At the very least, postpone the demolition and hold a dialogue between the land claimants and the department before anything is torn down,” he said.
Jerry said MHO wanted a temporary halt to enforcement, a formal dialogue with Chua, an opportunity for the farmers to present evidence of their more than 20 years on the land, and a peaceful resolution through proper administrative and legal channels.
On a separate dispute, Jerry said the Kg Pintasan land in Kota Belud was gazetted as grazing land for villagers during the British colonial era.
“A Commercial Land grant was later issued over the same land, sparking a dispute now before the courts for judicial review,” he said.
“The MHO sought Native Customary Rights (NCR) recognition for the land, but the Kota Belud Land Office said land already granted could not be processed for NCR status.
“If NCR cannot be given once a grant has been issued, then what is the purpose of NCR in the first place?” he said.
He said field inspectors should have checked for graves, homes and existing livelihoods before the grant was approved.
“The Lands and Surveys Director advised that the matter be discussed further,” he said, adding that MHO would follow up to help the villagers defend their ancestral land.
Meanwhile, Kg Pahu Sungai Kinabatangan Chairman Yulius Kasu, representing 71 land occupants, thanked MHO and Chua for the reprieve.
“Without MHO fighting for us, I do not think this postponement would have happened. We are grateful to MHO and to the director for giving us this space to hold a dialogue later,” he said.
Kota Belud Kuala Pintasan Padang Ragut Community Chief Rusidi Merjin, representing 186 residents in a livestock community in Kota Belud, said the community was not fully satisfied with the director’s response but accepted his advice to continue through legal channels.
“There is still room for us to hold a dialogue on this. We will discuss this with Jerry and the MHO team, who have given us a lot of guidance and help, on how we proceed from here,” he said.