Son not recovered from Sg Kim Kim pollution, father tells court

The father of one of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit over pollution at Sungai Kim Kim told the High Court yesterday his son still suffers from myokymia after the 2019 incident.

Myokymia causes tremors and weaknesses in various parts of the body.

Idham Wazir A Wahab, 53, father of Irfan Wafiy, who is the first plaintiff, said his son’s legs still twitch and he frequently experiences leg cramps.

“Irfan is now studying at the Johor Bahru Mara Junior College of Science in Bandar Seri Alam and obtained 4A in recent exams,” he said when questioned by lawyer Walter Pereira, appearing for Irfan, 17, and 41 other plaintiffs on the first day of the RM30 million lawsuit over the river pollution incident.

According to Idham, the last time his son received treatment was before the Covid-19 movement control order, and, until now, there has been no follow-up treatment from Kuala Lumpur Hospital, while the attending doctor retired.

“The doctor said there was no cure for the disease and no record of it in Malaysia. So, the doctor prescribed medication on a trial-and-error basis based on overseas cases. The medication is not suitable for my son… making him sleep,” he said.

Lawyers Kamarudin Ahmad and Radiah Karim represented all plaintiffs, while senior federal counsel Mohamed Azzam Zainal Abidin, who is also the assistant state legal adviser for Johor, represented the Johor government, menteri besar, and state executive councillor for health, environment, and agriculture.

Senior federal counsels Zetty Zurina Kamaruddin, Nurul Farhana Khalid, and Safiyyah Omar appeared for the Department of Environment (DOE)’s director-general and the Malaysian government, while lawyers Phang Soon Mun, Chew Chun Wei, and Yvonne Chai Yi Wen represented P Tech Resources Sdn Bhd.

Judge Samsulbahri Ibrahim set the hearing to continue on June 2, Aug 18 and 19, as well as Oct 14 and 15.

2k people affected

The plaintiffs, comprising pupils and the public, filed the suit in July 2019. They named 12 defendants, including the Johor government, the state DOE and Department of Irrigation and Drainage, P Tech Resources, one of its workers, and two company directors.

The plaintiffs alleged the defendants failed to ensure the safety and protection of Pasir Gudang residents from the threat of toxic pollution and accused them of failing to mobilise the state Disaster Management Committee to address the pollution of Sungai Kim Kim.

Irfan suffered severe injuries to his legs, preventing him from walking normally, while other plaintiffs experienced symptoms such as coughing, breathing difficulties, chest pain, headaches, and injuries to the eyes, affecting their vision.

The plaintiffs seek general, special, and aggravated damages, as well as an order for the first defendant (Johor government) to cover the health examination costs for each plaintiff for three years from the date of judgment.

The Sungai Kim Kim pollution incident broke out in March 2019, affecting the health of over 2,000 people and leading to the closure of 111 schools in Pasir Gudang.

On Nov 30 last year, the court fined a lorry driver RM100,000 for causing pollution by illegally disposing of scheduled waste into the river.

The court also fined P Tech Resources a total of RM320,000 for eight charges under the Environmental Quality (Clean Air) Regulations 2014.

- Bernama