A group of 20 youths aligned to BN, known as the "Young Master Movement", wants all Penang assemblypersons from both sides of the divide to support the motion to halt hillslope development.

This motion is expected to be tabled by Umno's Pulau Betong assemblyperson Muhammad Farid Saad in the State Legislative Assembly today.

State Gerakan Youth acting chief Jason Loo, who leads the movement, said: "The motion is important so that the environment can be protected and preserved for the coming generations."

Yesterday, about 20 members of the group gathered outside the State Legislative Assembly on Lebuh Light and held placards with slogans such as "Approve the Motion Unanimously", "Stop Hillslope Development", "Young Masters" and "New Politics". 

Their demands came after Penang was severely hit by multiple disasters - the Sept 15 floods, the Tanjung Bungah landslide that killed 11 and the massive storm on Nov 4 and 5, which claimed seven lives.

Following the landslide on Oct 21, civil society and resident groups have strongly criticised the Penang government for its development policies, threatening to pull back their support if their pleas fell on deaf ears.

Loo said the movement has questioned the state government on several development issues since November 2015. 

"We queried about the conversion of land from the hillside to residential homes on a botak (bald) hill in Relau, and urged for rehabilitation of the hill," Loo said.

"From January 2015 to November 2016, we urged the state government to explain the process of gazetting Pulau Jerejak as a forest reserve, which seems to have been delayed since 2008," he added.

Loo said the group cared for the environment, whereby in January this year, its members planted two trees on Relau Hill, to instil hope that the area would be green again.

Since news of the balding hill broke in 2013, the Penang Island City Council has been making an effort to restore the greenery in the area, while the company that carried out the illegal clearing has been brought to court and slapped with a fine of RM50,000.

In March this year, Loo's group launched the "Our tree, our heritage, our future" programme to ensure that no hills will be balded or cleared by certain quarters.

"So we urge all elected representatives in this august House to unanimously agree to the motion on hillslope development that will be filed by our BN assemblyperson," Loo added.