Former PAS vice-president Husam Musa has appealed to the Kelantan government to stop giving out contracts to clear out the forests in the state.

"I call on the Kelantan government, with all my heart, to immediately stop approvals (for these contracts).

"Think of your duty and responsibility on this earth to care for all creatures, including the animals in the forest, to sustain the treasures on this earth for the next generations and equality in distributing natural resources," Husam pleaded in a press statement.

He noted that Kelantan is now one of the biggest states in the country to approve the clearing of forests in Peninsular Malaysia.

Husam ( photo ) referred to the state government's most recent decision to allocate 4,500 hectares of land to a plantation company, saying that this would add to the swathe of forests that would be gone forever, along with all the flora and fauna within.

The practice of clearing forests has many negative consequences, he warned.

It would contribute to global warming, potentially causing droughts and other natural disasters, Husam said, adding that a study on the ecological effects of widespread forest clearing in the state has probably not been done.

This would also lead to the destruction of natural resources for future generations, he warned.

Husam also pointed out that the practice of giving out these contracts without an open tender was causing the state to lose money and to build on cronyism and corruption.

The land, he said, should be distributed among the people of Kelantan, through limited commercial and non-commercial schemes, and that this could benefit the state greatly.

This would also be the catalyst to a restructuring of the socio-economic system in the state, he said.

Husam said he has brought up this issue to the Kelantan state government multiple times, both privately and in public.

Most recently, he said, he submitted a letter to the state government on Oct 3, urging it to retract licences to clear forests but did not receive any reply.