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THE pig farming issue in Selangor has been raging for months. We have seen it clearly: some speak of wisdom, some speak of the bigger picture, some speak of harmony, some speak of the environment. After all this talk, where are the rice bowls of ordinary people?
No one has answered.
The Sultan of Selangor cares about the environment and water sources. We respect that.
His Royal Highness worries that pig waste and wastewater may pollute rivers. His Royal Highness is also concerned that pig farming activities may affect water protection areas and rivers, which serve as sources of clean water for approximately nine million residents in Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and the Federal Territory of Putrajaya.
His Royal Highness believes that Selangor’s land is limited and expensive, and that pig farming does not align with Selangor’s long-term development direction. These are not false issues. These concerns have a basis in public governance and deserve to be taken seriously.
But we must ask one thing: if a state wants to be truly wise, can it see only pollution but not people’s livelihoods? Can it see only rivers but not people’s rice bowls? Pollution can be managed, but can the people’s way of life and food culture simply be erased?
His Royal Highness called for a “complete stop”, a “full stop”. This means the controversy should end here, to avoid social unrest. This can be understood as a desire to cool down the dispute.
But after the “full stop”, what then?
What happens to the farmers? What happens to the sows and piglets? What happens to the loans, equipment, workers, and the family enterprises built over decades, even generations?
Is “full stop” the end of the controversy, or the end of the farmers’ livelihoods?
The problem is not the Sultan.
His Royal Highness set a direction. But the state government and those in power turned that direction into action: stopping licences, clearing farms, enforcing deadlines. Action creates costs. Who will bear those costs?
The state government says it is “complying with the titah”. What a convenient phrase. With that phrase, it seems that the legal basis does not need to be disclosed, administrative procedures do not need to be completed, compensation plans do not need to be announced, and transformation pathways do not need to be explained.
With one word — “titah” — responsibility is pushed up to the sky. But what about the people on the ground? No one cares, while flattery continues without end.
If the state government implements it this way, then it is pushing responsibility away, shifting costs downward, and evading accountability.
Those in power turn royal concern into political convenience, and turn “full stop” into a free pass. They speak of wisdom, but what they mean is their own political wisdom. They speak of the bigger picture, but what they protect is the security of their own positions.
They speak of harmony, but in the end, it may become a demand that the people stop asking questions. But they never speak of this: who will compensate for the labour of generations of farmers? Who will take over the broken supply chain? Who will bear the consequences if pork prices rise?
This is bullying
Bullying farmers who do not speak loudly. Bullying ordinary people who do not understand the law. Bullying pork-eating citizens who have long been treated as an inconvenient group to be seen. Bullying those with the least bargaining power.
But you have miscalculated one thing.
Food is the foundation of people’s lives. These words are not just a slogan. They are the dining tables of countless people, the hawkers in wet markets, the lorry drivers, restaurant workers, feed suppliers, cold chain operators, slaughterhouse workers, and all Malaysians who eat pork.
To those who do not eat pork, this is not your dietary practice. We respect that. But please also respect one fact: you may not truly understand what the pork supply chain means to another part of the people. It is not a matter of taste. It is about the dining table, the industry, family enterprises, and the fruits of generations of labour.
This is not a religious issue. This is not an ethnic issue. This is a livelihood issue.
Today, pig farmers are not your political sacrifices. If the government can end a lawful industry with one sentence, without compensation, without transition, without a way out, then any ordinary person — regardless of ethnicity or religion — may become the next calculated target. Does this country still have the rule of law?
This is the situation that the whole nation does not want to see. It is not about whether anyone opposes the Sultan. It is not about whether anyone opposes the government. It is about all of us being in the same boat. Today, pig farmers are sacrificed. Tomorrow, it may be any ordinary person.
When we question the legal basis, administrative procedures, reasonable compensation and transformation pathways, we are not begging for charity for pig farmers. We are defending a line for everyone who may one day be crushed by the cost of policy.
So today, we only ask four things
Where is the legal basis?
Where are the administrative procedures?
Where is the reasonable compensation?
Where is the transformation pathway?
The Sultan’s titah is a reminder, wisdom and direction — even the Prime Minister’s Senior Political Adviser, Tengku Zafrul, has publicly said that it is not law, not a command.
Then let the state government produce the law, produce the procedures, produce the compensation, and produce the transformation plan. Do not hide behind “complying with the titah” while shifting all the costs onto those with the least power.
Selangor must be wise
True wisdom is not only seeing pollution, but also seeing the people’s rice bowls.
True wisdom is not only shouting “full stop”, but also giving pig farmers a way to live.
True wisdom is not shifting costs from those above to those below, but ensuring that every person’s livelihood is seen. Today, we do not curse anyone. We only ask one question:
State government, have you accounted for the pig farmers’ rice bowls? This is not a performance. Without answers, it is not complete governance. Without an account, it is not a government that bears responsibility for the people.
Chan Hon Ying
A concerned son of Selangor and loyal to my country, my King and my Sultan
The observations reflect the writer's personal insights and do not necessarily represent the official stance of The Vibes.com