MIRI – Sarawak Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri James Jemut Masing has refuted claims that he owns shares in timber logging projects in Sarawak, after he came under heavy fire from the public for the havoc caused by a massive logjam in central Sarawak.
Locals have taken to social media to take Masing to task on why, as a long-time minister of land development, he allegedly did not stop destruction caused by logging projects.
Netizens bombarded him repeatedly on chat groups and his Facebook page, many asking why he had failed to protect the forests and natives.
“You are the deputy CM, don’t just talk,” said a critic.”Why is the logging getting out of hand and causing so much destruction to our forests and nature?
“You should have stopped them. What is the point of being a DCM and YB if you cannot control the timber companies?”
Another netizen told Masing to resign as deputy chief minister and assemblyman for Baleh if he cannot fulfill his duties to protect the natives.
Masing had an exchange of words with his critics, denying allegations that he owns shares in the logging projects.
“Please note that I am not the authority giving out timber concessions, nor do I have an iota of timber business shares, as alleged by unscrupulous cybertroopers,” he replied.
Masing said that he knows those who have had associations with timber business groups in the past and present, but did not reveal any names.
The massive logjam in Sg Baleh, Kapit, central Sarawak that started on Sunday has caused river travel woes for thousands of riverine villagers.
Some 200,000 people in Sibu have been hit by a water supply disruption from yesterday as raw water intake has been affected by the tonnes of timber choking rivers in Kapit about 300km away.
Sibu residents complained that their taps had run dry since the early hours of yesterday.
Ting Kiong Sing, a resident of a flat in Sibu Jaya, said the water disruption was sudden.
“The water pressure was very low since Sunday, and then there was no more water,” he said.
“I called the water board and they said their treatment plants are affected by water intake disruption, resulting in lack of water for treatment,” he said.
In a statement, the Sibu Water Board said operations at the Salim and Bukit Lima treatment plants were disrupted around 3am yesterday due to heavy mud at the raw water intake source.
“The water intake source is linked to the river affected by the logjam. We are gradually restoring water intake after taking measures to remove the silt,” the board said, adding that water supplies will normalise gradually.
Not the first serious logjam
The huge logjam started on Sunday afternoon, seriously affecting Sg Baleh, which leads to the Baleh hydroelectric dam site.
Save Sarawak Rivers chairman Peter Kallang had alerted The Vibes on the matter, calling for a probe into environmental degradation.
Masing then issued a statement and blamed logging operators in the upstreams of Baleh Dam for the logjams.
He expressed frustration that their timber operations had caused tonnes of debris to flow into the rivers.
He said the state should withdraw the logging permit for these irresponsible logging operators.
This is the second major logjam that happened in Kapit this year.
On March 30, the state authorities carried out the massive task of clearing tonnes of timber debris jamming the upper reaches of Sg Balui in interior Bakun Dam, also in central Sarawak.
Murum assemblyman Kennedy Chukpai Ugon had then deployed manpower and machinery to cut the logs up.
Since January, tonnes of timber logs and debris from logging zones have jammed up Sg Balui and its tributaries in the upper reaches of Bakun Dam in Belaga district, cutting off more than a thousand natives.
The natives have been unable to travel to the outside world to buy essential items, or go fishing, as the rivers are clogged by massive piles of logging debris washed into these rivers during the floods in November and December last year and in January this year.
The affected villagers are from the populated settlements of Long Keboho, Naha Jalei, Naha Nyalong, Long Bulan, and Long Jawa.
Sarawak PKR information chief Abun Sui, who is a Belaga native, had said the villagers are facing a lot of hardship and dangers because of these repeated logjams.
He said the villagers had already alerted the state authorities for help but State Transport Minister Datuk Lee Kim Shin had responded by saying works can only be carried out to remove the logging debris from the rivers after the conditional movement control order is over. – The Vibes, August 24, 2021
