Palm oil operations in Sabah given conditional approval

KOTA KINABALU: Oil palm plantations and mills in six Sabah districts will be allowed to operate during the movement control order (MCO) period contingent on several conditions, Chief Minister Shafie Apdal said today.

He said conditional approval would be granted to the companies in Tawau, Lahad Datu, Kinabatangan, Semporna, Kunak and Kalabakan which would be allowed to resume operations beginning today.

Besides the regulations set out by the health department, the companies must also adhere to the following:

• No employees who test positive for Covid-19;
• No persons under investigation (PUI) working with them;
• No close contact between plantation and factory workers, and known Covid-19 patients or PUIs.

“If the companies are found to have violated these, approval will be immediately revoked,” Shafie said in a statement.

The Semporna MP had previously instructed the health department and police to conduct ground checks before the state decides whether to allow the industry to resume operations during the MCO.

He said he needed facts and could not depend only on assurances from those affected in the industry that they were free from the Covid-19 virus.

Speaking today, he said the approval would be reviewed from time to time. - FMT