PM 'knows nothing' of Sg Pulai golf resort land status

Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad said he was in the dark over the status of the land used for the Forest City Golf Resort, Johor.

"I know nothing," he told the press after flagging off the inaugural Asia GT Festival at the Sepang International Circuit today.

The prime minister said this when asked if the land used for the golf course - once part of a forest reserve - was now a sultanate land.

Mahathir said he was only keen on talking about the vehicles at the event today.

Asked if the matter was a sensitive issue, Mahathir replied: "I don't know."

On Feb 14, Malaysiakini had reported that the golf resort was constructed on land that was once part of the reserved Sungai Pulai mangrove forest. 

Repeated attempts to establish who owned the land and the land status have been unsuccessful.

Project owners Country Gardens Pacificview Sdn Bhd also did not respond to request for comments.

Following this, Water, Land and Natural Resources Minister Xavier Jayakumar told the press that Mahathir was aware of the matter.

"I think the prime minister is very concerned in this matter, and he had told us to look into how we could have more say as far as deforestation is concerned," Xavier had said.

The Sungai Pulai mangrove forest is a large mangrove forest complex and is one of three wetlands recognised by the Ramsar Convention, a non-binding treaty on wetlands preservation, which Malaysia is a party to.

The other two wetlands - Pulau Kukup and Tanjung Piai - have been granted national park status.

Malaysiakini's report on Sungai Pulai mangrove forest had established that several portions of the reserved land had been excised and used for industrial purposes over the years. 

Pulau Kukup now a 'national park reserve'

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