The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission's (MACC) recent swoop on illegal logging in Sarawak has left its government red faced after claiming that the activity makes up a miniscule part of the industry, says a DAP state assemblyperson.

Chan Foong Hin pointed out that the Sarawak government in 2012  had claimed that illegal activities only comprise 0.01 percent of RM731 million in revenue collected from logging.

"How much actually 0.01 percent of the RM731 million? It’s only RM73,100. How could illegal logging losses in Sarawak jump sharply to at least RM100 million per year within five years time?

"Obviously, the previous figure is inaccurate and misleading," Chan ( right ) said in a statement today.

This comes after the MACC  announced yesterday that it has busted an illegal logging ring involving the police and frozen the accounts of 30 companies worth RM18 million.

The graft buster said the Sarawak government had lost an estimated RM43 million in its nine-month surveillance operation and is believed to have lost RM100 million annually.

However, Chan praised Sarawak Chief Minister Adenan Satem, who came to power in March this year, for better transparency as these figures did not surface under previous chief minister Abdul Taib Mahmud.

Chan urged the MACC to likewise probe illegal logging in Sabah as the state's falling timber revenue is raising concerns about possible corruption.

"Does Sabah also have the similar problem? It is reported that the timber royalty in the state has been dropping drastically over 60 percent from RM465 million in 2005 to RM173 million in 2012.

"How much is Sabah's illegal logging losses?" asked the Sabah state assemblyperson.