We here at Sungai Petani Bersih are very pleased to read the report "Anti-Corruption Agency to monitor claims posted on the Internet" in The Star (Jan 2) stating that the ACA in Malaysia is monitoring claims of corruption posted on the Internet. We would like to assure the authorities concerned that all our information about environmental pollution caused by the sawmills in Sungai Petani is accurate and true.

Our main aim is to highlight the plight of the residents of Sungai Petani after years of being victimised by these sawmills in Bakar Arang Industrial Estate. The Kedah state government have not done anything to rectify the situation although they were the ones that created the problem in the first place by approving plans to develop an industrial area next to a residential area.

Kedah's Department of Environment should also be taken to task for not doing enough to enforce the environmental act on these factories.

In the report, ACA analysis division director Mustafar Ali said detailed investigations would be conducted as those with evidence would normally lodge reports directly to the ACA.

We here at Sungai Petani Bersih would like to reiterate that we have not and do not intend to break any legal clauses in the Anti-Corruption Act 1997. Our purpose is just to bring to light, what the public can already see for themselves. These sawmills are releasing thick black smoke and pungent odours daily, and mostly throughout the night. This has been going on for more than 10 years and despite complaints, the state government had remained silent.

We do not need to implicate anyone here for corruption but we are sure that ACA can see for themselves that there is a major mismanagement on the part of the authorities here in Kedah.

Thus, we here at Sungai Petani Bersih would like to show our support for ACA's latest effort to wipe out corruption in this country. We will continue to publish our observations on the pollution situation here and we invite officers from the agency to verify the data for themselves. Investigations need to be carried out and when the guilty ones are caught, we hope that there will be no more pollution in Sungai Petani.