Pahang Menteri Besar Adnan Yaakob must suspend all licences for the export of bauxite through the Kuantan Port if he truly cares about the people’s well-being, PKR’s Kuantan MP Fuziah Salleh said today.

Fuziah said this in response to Adnan’s statement yesterday that the “social benefit and welfare of the innocent, common people must outweigh whatever economic benefits”.

She said Adnan must also agree to a moratorium on all mining, as proposed by the federal government.

“That will be proof of his statement.

“Suspend, regulate, enforce, rehabilitate. Nothing less than the four demands, for the people,” Fuziah ( photo ) added.

The state government said it is working with the federal government to come up with a comprehensive plan on bauxite mining.

Operators ignoring state's advice

Adnan said the state government has engaged with the stakeholders on the matter on various occasions and has advised operators, contractors and transport operators to be more responsible.

He said he advised them to “take into consideration the hardship the people are experiencing due to their irresponsible mode of extracting the ore”.

“Sadly, this advice has fallen on deaf ears,” he said.

The government earlier clamped down on illegal mines.

Social media is awash with pictures of Kuantan’s surrounding areas covered in red dust, following the rampant mining of bauxite – most of which are illegal.

There are also many complaints of reckless driving by drivers of many lorries carrying the ore from Bukit Goh to Kuantan Port.

Test commissioned by locals and the Department of Environment on water in the vicinity of the mines and Kuantan Port showed higher than permitted metal content .

Locals rent out the land, from which the ore is extracted, to miners for lucrative fees.