Civil society groups are calling on the government to set up a Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) into the problem of toxic gas pollution in Pasir Gudang, Johor.

The NGOs, including a parent-teacher association, want the government to identify the cause of the pollution and put an end to the problem, which had seen many residents evacuated and schools closed.

According to SMK Pasir Putih Parent-Teachers Association chairperson Ahmad Yusoff Suparman, they want answers to what has been going on to cause these problems.

Condemning the recurrence of pollution in the area, Yusoff said the authorities there had not been providing much information to the public.

"How are we to say it’s safe for the students to return to school (on Sunday). When we say it’s okay (for them), then we get hit again.

"The authorities here have given us very little information on what’s happening. We will have to wait for their announcement if it’s safe," Yusoff was reported as saying by the online portal The Malaysian Insight (TMI).

Stop-work order also issued

Yusoff added that they want the RCI to start with the pollution incident at Sungai Kim Kim and to all the industrial areas in Pasir Gudang.

The recent pollution incident caused the closure of 347 kindergartens, 111 schools and three higher learning institutions in the area for a week as the authorities monitored the air quality.

The Johor Environment Department (DOE) had since issued a stop-work order to three chemical factories in Pasir Gudang as they have been found to have the potential to cause air pollution.

Environmental movement Sahabat Alam Malaysia (SAM) called for the RCI to be set up soon and to look into possible negligence on the part of authorities as well.

Quoting an unnamed spokesperson, TMI said that SAM is demanding for the inquiry body as two serious incidents had taken place in the area in less than four months.

“The RCI must identify the root causes of chemical pollution and ascertain the culprits responsible.

“It must also determine the culpability or negligence of the various authorities who have allowed this problem to go on.

“The RCI should look into the adequacy of current laws as well as the capabilities and capacity of our enforcement authorities and make recommendations that will help safeguard public welfare, health and safety in the future,” the SAM spokesperson was quoted as saying.