BALIK PULAU – While Zakaria Ismail ascended as a hero among fishermen for successfully setting aside the environmental impact assessment (EIA) approval for the controversial Penang South Islands (PSI) project, one particular fisherwoman thought otherwise.
Instead of a circumstantial hero for the future, Fajinah Jaafar deems Zakaria to have destroyed the livelihoods of the fishermen by halting the project.
A day after learning that the appeal board decided last week, under the Environmental Quality Act 1974, to side with Zakaria, Fajinah decided to file a petition to apply for the PSI project to continue.
The 60-year-old fisherwoman said that she was disappointed to learn that the PSI project was stalled, as she thought the project could provide a better future for the fishermen.
“I want this project to continue, which is why I, with my sister’s help, am willing to collect signatures and support from those who want the PSI project to continue,” she told The Vibes when met at her home in Kuala Sg Pinang here.
Fajinah said she has collected 930 signatures so far, 421 of them from fishermen and 509 from the public.
She explained that she did not want to make an online petition on social media as she did not want members of the public to question the validity of her work, and so decided to collect it “manually” with pen and paper.
The feisty lady said she wants to hand it over to Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow, but added that it is still in the “planning stage”.
When asked why she wanted the PSI project to continue despite the statement from the Penang Fishermen’s Association, Fajinah said she refused to let the fishermen continue to be squeezed by poverty in coming generations.
She said that the compensation provided by the state government was very affordable, and all fishermen should look at and accept this with an open heart.
“The state government wants to provide free boats, tuition, and education schemes for fishermen’s children and housing. Isn’t that enough? All this for the sake of our future.”
The members of the Permatang Tepi Laut fisherman unit admitted that among the most compelling forms of compensation was the offer of 27-foot-long boats with engine capacities of 60hp or 75hp.
Fajinah said she is currently using a 30-year-old, 40hp secondhand boat that she purchased from a friend.
“If the weather is unpredictable, I will not go to sea as the boat is old. All of this makes my income uncertain,” said the single mother of two.
She said that fishermen are used to surviving on a day-to-day basis, and that she hopes her friends can “rise up” and stop being afraid to be honest about their respective positions.
“I am not a known person. I have no rank, let alone property. But I speak for the future of my children and grandchildren. I do not want this poverty to be inherited.” – The Vibes, September 18, 2021
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