Pengerang residents who refused to relocate to make way for the construction of a mega petrochemical plant, have decided to file a legal suit against the Johor state government over the land acquisition process.

The suit will be filed on the grounds that the state government did not follow legal procedures in the land acquisition process and the environment impact assessment report of the project has not been approved.

According to Chinese newspaper Oriental Daily, Save Our Pengerang (SOP) treasurer Chua Peng Sian said the committee is collecting information and documents from residents who are against the land acquisition.

“We will raise funds from the public to finance the suit. The villagers do not need to worry about it, they do not need to pay legal fees for this suit,” he said.

Chua claimed that the Land Acquisition Act 1960 requires the state government to carry out matters stipulated in Sections 4, 8 and 9 before using Section 10 to issue form E and start negotiations with the residents.

However, the authorities has requested residents to enter negotiations on Sept 3 without going through Section 8 and 9, he said.

The group will write to the Land Office requesting postponement of the land negotiations.

On the other hand, Johor Menteri Besar office’s oil and gas unit chief executive officer Mohd Yazid Jaafar said the residents would be committing an offence under the law if they did not move out from the acquired lands by next March.