PKR: Pengerang project guise for massive land grab

The petrochemical project in Pengerang, Johor is a guise for a massive land-grab by Johor menteri besar Ghani Othman to enrich his cronies, alleged PKR vice president Chua Jui Meng.

Chua claimed that when the Petronas Refinery and Petrochemical Integrated Development (Rapid) was oirignally proposed to Selangor last year, the land request was for 2,889 acres, while Petronas later requested for 6,400 acres of land in Johor.

However, the compulsory land acquisition that is now taking place in phases to make way for the project in Pengerang would eventually gobble up 22,500 acres of land, said Chua, who is also Johor PKR chief.

“This shows that Ghani Othman’s intention is to get large tracts of land on the cheap. Cheap! (This is) in order to start a land bank again.

“The way it will be done is to buy low and sell it cheaply to cronies. The cronies would change the land type from agriculture to development, and jack up the price by 1,000 percent or more,” he said at a press conference at PKR’s headquarters today.

[More to follow]