Kerpan In Danger

17th January 2008.
The decision of the Parti Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS) led Kedah state government as reported in the mass media to allow the sale of approximately 400 ha of the Kerpan shrimp farm land to a consortium of companies seeking to invest in a 7.7 billion ringgit oil refinery project engulfing parts of the parliamentary constituency of Jerlun is ill- advised and ill-timed. Any decision in favour of the said consortium that fails to take into account the wishes and consequential direct and indirect effects upon the Rakyat and in particular the farmers who have so toiled the shrimp farms churning out an encouraging revenue stream of 7.5 million ringgit on about 500 tonnes of shrimp thus far would in the end be self-defeating and disastrous. These poor farmers have banked their hopes and the future of their families on the prospects of growth of the Kerpan shrimp farm. The closure of the Kerpan shrimp farm could result in the loss of income for at least 200 farmers and the further loss of jobs for the more than 100 contractors involved in the industry. Therefore, I find it incumbent upon myself to state that while we are not against the proposed oil refinery per se and that we welcome economic development; it must not be at the expense of the Rakyat. Therefore, I strongly urge the state government as well as the said consortium to consider another site instead within the vicinity or any other suitable location in my constituency of Jerlun which would not cause disruption or impact negatively upon the socio-economic well being of the locals. Also, we hope that in the event the said project is indeed implemented at another location, that adequate measures be instituted to ensure that the ensuing facility will provide sufficient jobs to the locals and not just to better qualified and trained foreign talent. Failure to do so could force local youths to move out to other areas seeking a livelihood while there's a billion dollar industry in our own backyard. Safeguards must also be in place to preserve and protect Kedah's environmental heritage. This state which is a major food processing zone and serves as the 'rice bowl' of Malaysia cannot afford any degradation of its fertile soil and natural surroundings. Similarly, the interests of local fishermen must also be protected.
In this context, it is not surprising that the Angkatan Warga Sedar (AWAS) had recently organised a peaceful demonstration against the anticipated adverse impact and loss of income that could affect not only the Kerpan shrimp farmers but also more than 500 local fishermen from Kuala Sanglang to Kuala Jerlun. We fully support the guiltless actions of AWAS and empathise with their cause.
Thus, I would advise against dismissing the discontent and unhappiness that this proposed project has caused by justifying the loss of livelihood for the shrimp farmers as a "billion against a small sacrifice by farmers" and a "no brainer" as was quoted from a state government source. This type of insensitive comments is uncalled-for when it is these very farmers whom we seek to serve and whose great many sacrifices form the backbone of this nation.
Nation building requires that we adopt a well thought-out and consistent economic policy that inspires confidence and certainty and not adopt inconsistent and contradictory measures.

Dato' Mukhriz Mahathir
http://www.mukhriz.com/

tunku : why is the kedah goverment only interested on that particular site where kerpan shrimp farm land is situated.why don't they seek another site? we hope the kedah government will think about the farmers there and not how much commission they will get.be rationale when doing something.