MP SPEAKS When the four ministers issued a joint statement that the Lynas radioactive waste must be exported out of Malaysia, Lynas was hit hard and had to halt the trading in its shares.

Some desperate politicians from the BN thought that they could salvage dwindling support for the government by reiterating that Lynas has to ship its waste out of Malaysia.

NONE The reason given, that the government is not prepared to compromise on the health of it's citizens, was an opportunity not to be missed for some BN ministers who are desperate to win votes.

The Atomic Energy Licensing Board (AELB) knew very well that the export of radioactive waste is not allowed according to international law. Yet AELB put down a letter of undertaking from Lynas to remove the waste from Malaysia as a requirement of the temporary operating licence (TOL) for the Lynas Advanced Materials Plant.

Knowing full well that this cannot happen, since Australia has made it very clear that it will not accept Lynas' toxic radioactive waste, apart from the terms laid down by international law, it was still put down as a requirement of the TOL. Certainly this clause is none other than an effort to hoodwink the anti-Lynas groups.

Interestingly, soon after the joint ministerial statement on Dec 10, which brought trading of Lynas shares to a halt, Maximus Johnity Ongkili , the Science Technology and Innovation Minister has had to come to Lynas' rescue .

Even when Maximus said yesterday that Lynas' radioactive and toxic waste, if in raw form, will have to be exported, he knew that technically that cannot happen.

NONE That is why Maximus ( left ) was quick to add that if the waste is commercialised, it can then be exported since it would no longer be classified as hazardous materials.

He continued to say that Lynas can export waste materials that are turned into commercial items, termed co-products, provided that the radioactivity is reduced to less than 1 1 Becquerel of radiation per gram.

Thus in doing so, he openly admitted the fact (which I have stated all this while) about the plan by Lynas to dilute its radioactive waste. The process of dilution allows for the waste to be declassified from being labelled as radioactive.

'Wool over the eyes'

In his haste, the minister must have forgotten the 'plot': that the letter of undertaking by Lynas to remove the waste was just a spin to pull the wool over the eyes of anti-Lynas groups.

When Lynas Advanced Materials Plant (Lamp) managing director Mashal Ahmad openly admitted that international law does not allow for exportation of radioactive waste, he incidently called the bluff of the four ministers.

The guideline in the 'Radioactive Waste Management Plan' put together by AELB in 2011, three years after Lynas was allowed to construct its plant, was written in hindsight with the realisation that our country indeed does not have a guideline for radioactive waste management, and some clauses can be interpreted as facilitating Lynas in getting rid of its radioactive waste.

NONE The guideline allows for dilution of the radioactive waste so that once it is declassified, as being radioactive, it can be processed into commercial items.

Let us remind ourselves, that if Lynas were to operate their plant in Australia, they will have to return their toxic and radioactive waste to the mines in Mt Weld. Other rare earths refineries such as Molycorps is subjected to the same requirements - to send back radioactive waste to the mine of origin.

But in Malaysia, not only does Lynas enjoy a 12-year tax break, it will get electricity, water and gas at a subsidised rate, courtesy of the rakyat.

Lynas has had things going its way since the beginning. Thus it will not allow anything to come in its way now.

The rakyat is waiting and watching for what the government will do next.

FUZIAH SALLEH is a PKR vice-president and member of parliament for Kuantan.