'Assure people Lynas is safe'

Liow: Company must also explain why Australia will not accept waste material By ONG HAN SEAN hansean@thestar.com.mv

KUANTAN: All agencies involved must immediately look into the 31 recommendations made by the Parliamentary Select Committee on the Lynas rare earth plant, said Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai.

He said it was important to assure the people that their safety and health would not be compromised.

Liow also said that the company should explain why Australia would not accept the waste material since it promised that the radioactive level could be reduced.


The MCA's stand on the matter was that the waste should be sent out of Malaysia, he said after opening the annual general meeting for three MCA divisions here.

The PSC concluded in its report last week that Lynas should be awarded a temporary operating licence after finding that it had met the stipulated requirements.

On the Occupy Balok-Gebeng 24-hour rally organised by Himpunan Hijau, Liow said that such protests seemed to continue despite the Government's effort to ensure that the project was safe.

Anti-Lynas protesters failed to take their cause to the doorstep of the rare earth company yesterday but said that they would return to the site at a later date.

"We will come again," said leader Wong Tack after his group was turned away by police yesterday.

Several politicians had also joined the so-called Himpunan Hijau marchers who kicked off their 24-hour protest against the Lynas plant in Gebeng near here on Saturday.

Among them were PAS deputy president Mohamad Sabu and information chief Datuk Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man and Pahang DAP chairman Leong Ngah Ngah.

Also present was national laureate Datuk A. Samad Said.

Kuantan OCPD Asst Commisioner Mohd Jasmani Yusoff said the rally was peaceful but the organisers did not adhere to procedures under the Peaceful Assembly Act.

"They were supposed to inform the police 10 days prior to the event but Wong only told us two days before," said ACP Mohd Jasmani.

On another matter, Liow, who is MCA deputy president, said the Prime Minister had approved RM850.000 for SJK(C) Chung Ching to build a road leading into its new building.

Resource: The Star, Page: 13
Date: Monday, 25 June 2012

No comments:

Post a Comment