KOTA BHARU: The Kelantan government will propose to the federal government to build a wall along the Malaysia-Thailand border near the state.
Deputy Menteri Besar Datuk Dr Mohamed Fadzli Hassan said the construction of the nearly 100km wall along the said border was very important to combat smuggling activities as well as to control floods.
"If the security forces want to guard the entire border, it is difficult to do so because the Malaysia-Thailand border is very vast. We will bring this proposal to build the wall to the federal government,” he told reporters after the Kelantan International Congress on Rafflesia 2024 here on Tuesday (Nov 5).
"The authorities always maintain strict control at the border near this state, but there are many illegal bases that make it difficult to monitor unlawful activities.”
According to him, most of the land at the border belongs to individuals which makes it difficult for the authorities to combat smuggling as smugglers enter and exit the Malaysia-Thailand border through unregulated and hard-to-control routes.
Meanwhile, commenting on Rafflesia, Mohamed Fadzli said the state government had gazetted 400 hectares of land in Lojing, Gua Musang, to conserve the Rafflesia flower species.
He said the area had been gazetted since 2011 and involved three Rafflesia species namely Kerri, Cantleyi and Sumeiae.
"Rafflesia is a natural treasure that gives many opportunities to the state government to develop the eco-tourism industry further while also creating more job opportunities for the residents."
"In 2022, the state government officially announced and launched that area as the Rafflesia Conservation Park in Kelantan,” he told reporters at Tuesday's international congress.
According to him, the state government is committed to supporting research studies on the conservation and preservation of Rafflesia and its surrounding ecosystem.
"As a state that has many natural treasures such as forests and rivers, there is much work that needs to be done regarding research on how to protect that parasitic flower," he added. – Bernama
