NGO says various parties ignored court's stay order in Bukit Cherakah case

THE Shah Alam Community Forest Society (SACFS) has said that a developer carried out excavation work at the Bukit Cerakah Forest Reserve (BCFR) despite the stay order issued by the courts last month.

SACFS honorary treasurer Dr Teckwyn Lim said the developer and all parties were in contempt of court for non-compliance with the injunction issued by the Shah Alam High Court on Aug 11 for the protection of the forest reserve.

ALSO READ: Selangor to carry out Bukit Cherakah Forest Reserve degazettement to avoid lawsuit

He said SACFS and Pertubuhan Pelindung Khazanah Alam (PEKA) had taken legal action against the Selangor government to ask the court to examine if backdating the degazettement of BCFR was legal.

“The court has set a date for hearing the application for a judicial review on Sept 28.

“The fact that there is an injunction means they are not allowed to do anything in the area until the judicial hearing on Sept 28.

“This includes the Selangor government issuing land titles and the private companies carrying out any form of development,” he told StarMetro.

ALSO READ: Bukit Cerakah Forest Reserve degazettement completes process pending since 2006, says Forestry Dept

Dr Lim said he had videos of excavation work being carried out during the weekend inside the 406.2ha area of the forest reserve.

“We have also appealed to Kota Anggerik assemblyman Najwan Halimi to bring this matter up with the Select Committee on Competency, Accountability and Transparency (Selcat).

“How could the land titles be given out if Bukit Cerakah was still a forest reserve until May this year?

"There are irregularities here,” added Lim.

On Monday (Sept 5), Selangor Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari said the Selangor government would have opened itself to lawsuits if they did not go ahead with degazettement order of 406.2 ha of BCFR.

In July this year, the Selangor Forestry Department clarified that the degazettement of the Bukit Cherakah Forest Reserve on May 5, 2022 was to complete the degazettement process which stopped around 2006.