Defending the environs: The Orang Asli of Kampung Air Hitam and Tanjung Keruing have made a police report alleging unauthorised clearing of what appears to be peat land next to their villages in the Pekan district.
KUANTAN: For the past one week, a group of Orang Asli villagers from Tanjung Keruing and Kampung Air Hitam have been involved in a dispute with contractors clearing a patch of secondary forest near their settlements.
They are claiming that land clearing activities by the Pahang Farmers’ Association (Pasfa) had encroached into their ancestral land located about 80km from here, along with threatening the ecosystem consisting of peat land.
Represented by Roslan Tinggal, the villagers, from the Jakun community, lodged a police report at the Paloh Hinai police station on Oct 9, saying land clearing by Pasfa for its plantation involved draining the peat swamp, thus leading to the risk of fires during the dry season.
An inspection next to Kampung Air Hitam by The Star earlier this month found two excavators digging trenches and removing native vegetation at work, while some young oil palms have been planted next to some ditches.
On Oct 9, some villagers took things into their hands by blocking a ditch which drains into a river next to Kampung Air Hitam, which the contractor subsequently reopened with machinery.
Later in the week, the villagers filled the ditch again, which was again cleared by the contractor using heavy machinery.
“We will continue to block the ditch by inspecting the site daily,” said Roslan, 41, when contacted.
He also claimed that the villagers were not consulted by Pasfa before it began its work there.
In July, Pasfa chairman Datuk Zamri Yaakob was quoted by a local daily saying that the 402.33ha project in Kampung Darat Air Hitam, which began last year, was not on a peat swamp forest but mineral soil.
“We previously held discussions with the Orang Asli community in the nearby villages about our project, with the cooperation of the Pekan Orang Asli Development Department (Jakoa),” he told reporters during a press conference at the Pasfa office here on July 14.
He added that Pasfa had complied with all requirements before the environmental impact assessment (EIA) was approved on June 29, 2022.
“Pasfa obtained the grants for oil palm plantation in 2019 before the EIA was approved in June 2021.
“We have already planted some 200ha. The remaining will be done in stages by year-end before the first harvest is expected in 2026,” he was quoted as saying in an English daily.
When contacted by The Star last Friday over the latest developments, Zamri said Pasfa would comment “in due course”.
Meanwhile, Pahang Jakoa has acknowledged that it was aware of the development on the ground, with an official from the Pekan branch of Jakoa saying the department was cognisant of the dispute in Air Hitam and Tanjung Keruing with Pasfa.
When contacted, Pahang Jakoa director Johari Alwi said he was unable to comment further, adding that the matter should be referred to the Jakoa headquarters at Putrajaya.
