Did Yeo help put through Penang reclamation project, asks PAS

 

PAS’s Muhammad Fauzi Yusoff asked former minister Yeo Bee Yin why the Penang reclamation project was approved before  the Penang Structure Plan 2030 was endorsed. (Facebook pic)

PETALING JAYA: Penang PAS has posed a question to former environment minister Yeo Bee Yin whether she had a hand in federal approval for the Penang South Islands project despite it not having a valid structure plan.

Muhammad Fauzi Yusoff also asked if the project, previously known as Penang South Reclamation, was approved before the nod was given for the Penang Structure Plan 2030 in 2019.

Yeo was the energy, science, technology, environment and climate change minister in the Pakatan Harapan (PH) Cabinet under the watch of Dr Mahathir Mohamad as the prime minister.

Fauzi wondered if there was political interference in the matter during the PH era as the Penang government was led by DAP. Yeo is a senior DAP member.

“Did the Penang government led by DAP ignore legal issues which were under consideration by the appeal board? Why was the approval given although the appeal was ongoing?” he asked in a statement today.

Yeo Bee Yin.

PAS is urging the state government to cancel the project, which involves the creation of three artificial islands off the south coast.

The state government says the project would create over 1,800 hectares of land for housing and industrial zones, among other uses.

It was touted as the future main economic driver for the state, creating thousands of jobs but environmentalists have said the islands will bury the state’s richest fishing and most biodiverse area, equivalent to 76,000 Olympic-size swimming pools.

The fishermen, supported by many NGOs, have objected to the development claiming that it will not only destroy the biodiversity in the area but also affect their livelihoods.

Fauzi said the project needs to be cancelled for the sake of the ecosystem as it is a source of livelihood for fishermen, adding that they fully support the fishermen and other communities affected by the project.

PAS also welcomed the announcement that the Environmental Appeals Board has revoked the approval for the project pending a fresh environmental impact assessment report.

“The revocation proves that justice can be enforced without political interference with the appeal board making a mature and a fair decision,” Fauzi said. - FMT