The declassified document on re-forestation projects in Selangor shows that the projects were faulty from day one.

The document, released by the Selangor government on Nov 13, states that even the agreement signed at the initial stages of the project was lop-sided.

The agreement between the government and Schafer Forest Management and Megafores Sdn Bhd had placed too much responsibility on the government, as opposed to the concessionaires.

The projects, located in Rantau Panjang, Bukit Tarek, Sungai Juloh and Bukit Belata forest reserves, were said to have " ripped off " the state as returns have been remarkably below the projected figures.

NONE Former Selangor Menteri Besar Mohamad Khir Toyo ( right ) had told reporters in 2001, when the projects were launched, that returns were expected to be as high as RM800 million in twenty years.

While Selangor Agricultural Development Corporation (PKPS) records show projected government earnings as a relatively more conservative estimate of RM39.75 million, actual earnings to date have been fairly dismal.

To date, all four projects have collectively brought in less than half a million ringgit to the state coffers.

This is despite the fact that projected earnings in 20 years for all seven companies totals a mind-numbing RM408.92 million in comparison.

The reforestation project was initially undertaken only in Bukit Tarek forest reserve, where 5000 hectares was allocated to plant herbs for pharmaceutical purposes.

The leaseholders were also required to replace the existing acacia trees with the more profitable rubber and teak.

Sungai Juloh lease given as replacement

Another 5000 hectares in the Rantau Panjang forest reserve were leased to five other companies in 2002, some of which were found to be dormant.

azlan In 2004, 200 hectares in the Sungai Jeloh forest reserve was granted to two other companies.

Aliran Angsana Sdn Bhd and Kinta Istimewa Sdn Bhd were initially granted leases to develop another area, but when that was found to be an Environmentally Sensitive Area (KSAS), the lease was cancelled.

They were granted the Sungai Juloh lease when they demanded a "replacement area", as they had already invested heavily in premium payments, registration fees, border measurements and the like.

In 2007, two more companies were given leases to 700 hectares in the Bukit Belata forest reserve.

Meigrand Sdn Bhd and Sin Swee Hin Sdn Bhd were given approval to plant rubber at Bukit Belata, in a joint venture with PKPS.

Based on the lease agreements with the four companies, PKPS had expected to receive approximately RM300,000 between 2001 and 2024. However, up to October 2009, the government has only received RM23,600.

Misuse of land and conflict of interest

The declassified document shows that Megafores had gone against the agreement and used the land for their own purposes for an oil palm plantation and an illegal animal feed factory.

The company also did not adhere to border agreements and had issued a letter of demand to PKPS for losses worth RM6.6 million, caused by what it claimed to the border restrictions.

The document also implies that some conflict of interest may be at play, as the same individuals sit on the board of the companies awarded the contract.

Yeo Kay Seat @ Yeo Siew Chong, Tan Kee Lin, Tan Hooi Poh, Tai Chee Ming and Malif Ismail are members of at least two of the four companies in the second phase of the reforestation projects.

Further, a check in September this year found that Kinta Istimewa Sdn Bhd is a dormant company.

The government has since frozen the contract awarded to one of the Sungai Jeloh concessionaire, Sim Swee Hin Sdn Bhd, as no work has been done on the 500 hectares awarded to them.

The Selangor Forestry Department has also been instructed to reimburse all payments already made by the company.

The declassified report is part of a series of three declassified documents released by the government during the Selangor state assembly sitting last week.

The other documents touched on the issue of the abandoned housing projects in Bukit Botak and Bandar Alam Perdana.

The Selangor government also on Tuesday declassified an investigation report on the Bukit Antarabangsa landslide, which was released by the Public Works Department (JKR) to the Ampang Jaya Municipal Council (MPAJ).