BALIK PULAU – The massive Penang South Islands (PSI) reclamation project remains a contentious point between PKR and the DAP-led state government as the reformist party attempts to placate the fishing community here.
Pakatan Harapan’s (PH) Balik Pulau candidate Datuk Muhammed Bakhtiar Wan Chik of PKR said his party has been trying to dissuade its coalition partner and the state government from going ahead with the project.
Bakhtiar, who is defending his seat against five others, added that Penang PKR chief Nurul Izzah Anwar has conveyed the party's stance to DAP.
“We do not support the PSI simply because of the unknown factors that may affect the fishermen. Our party president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has also made his stance clear. There is nothing for the fishermen to be aggrieved about. PKR wishes to help them.”
This came after the 6,000-strong Penang Fishermen’s Association (Pen Mutiara) threatened to vote out those in support of the reclamation project.
Baktiar said the issues raised by the association are premature because the project has come to a standstill.
“There is financial costing and the project has yet to receive the necessary environmental impact assessment (EIA) considerations,” he said at the sidelines of his ceramah here last night.
He added that even if the project commences, PKR will work to ensure that the fishermen will be protected in terms of their catches and the proposed reclamation is not detrimental to the environment.
Bakhtiar also urged the fishermen to not buy into political propaganda but to evaluate the project’s current stalled status.
“I think PKR and the fishermen have made our point clear to the state (government). Even civil society groups have sounded the alarm. The state will deliberate carefully over this project.”
The majority of the fishermen are voters in the Balik Pulau parliamentary constituency.
Baktiar will have to fend off challenges from Barisan Nasional’s Datuk Shah Headan Ayoob Hussain Shah – who is seen as his main rival – as well as Penang Perikatan Nasional’s Muhammad Harris Idaham Abdul Rashid, 30; Pejuang’s Ahmad Fazli Mohammad, and independents Datuk Seri Johnny Ch’ng Ewe Gee and Datuk Sabaruddin Ahmad.
Earlier, Pen Mutiara chairman Ibrahim Che Ros called on his members to refrain from voting for those who support the PSI project.
“Our vote is for leaders who protect our well-being and not those out to destroy our livelihoods. There are abundant marine resources here. Last year, we recorded a total catch of 300 tonnes, which was valued at RM5 million.
“So why must they destroy this rich marine habitat?”
The PSI project, covering 17sq km, involves the development of three man-made islands totalling 1,800ha in waters off Permatang Damar Laut, near Bayan Lepas.
It was introduced as a financial model for the Penang Transport Master Plan (PTMP), which is valued at RM46 billion. Among the proposals in the PTMP are three highways and a light rail transit to ease traffic congestion in the state. – The Vibes, November 15, 2022
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