Sarawak Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud has cleared the air on the subject of the renewal of more than 6500 land leases due to expire in four years' time throughout the state.

The titles will be automatically renewed if any land is not required for development and public purposes, he told a Barisan Nasional Kuching Action Team (KAT) dinner attended by about 1200 people in Kuching last night. But he did not mention the premium rates payable.

Taib's comments were clearly at variance with those of his Second Minister of Resource Management and Planning, Awang Tengah Ali Hassan, who had said that no government in the world would automatically renew land leases.

In the state legislative asembly sitting in December last year, Awang Tengah, who is also Minister of Public Utilities, disclosed that a total of 6584 land leases for agricultural, industrial and residential lands throughout Sarawak were due to expire on or before December 31, 2010.

Another 30,120 titles or leases are due to expire in nine years' time or by December 31, 2015.

This will bring the total number of land titles due to expire within the next nine years to nearly 37,000 in the whole state.

No 'automatic renewal'

State DAP leader Wong Ho Leng described the contradictory statements by the chief minister and Awang Tengah as "an indication of the incoherence in the state cabinet."

"But I do not know who is telling the truth," Wong said, adding that as far he is aware the Sarawak Land Code is silent on the matter of automatic renewal.

"I can't find the words 'automatic renewal' in the Land Code," he said.

Commenting on the issue, State Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) legal adviser Dominique Ng Kim Ho said that that to show their sincerity, the state government should amend the Land Code to give statutory effect to oral assurances on the automatic renewal of land leases.

"If the rates are not drastically reduced most people, especially the low-income group, will not be able to afford to pay," Ng told a press conference.

The opposition leaders have also called for leases to be renewed without any payment of premium. Wong's argument is that the premium had already been paid in the first place, and there should not be any more premiums being charged for renewal.

"I can understand if it is a new title with a first-time registered proprietor," Wong said.

"In this case, there can be a levy based on the rates determined by the Land & Survey Department."

PKR called for renewed leases to be held in perpetuity or 999 years and DAP suggested minimum 99 years lease, following the practice in Peninsular Malaysia.

Wong said he was deeply suspicious why the chief minister had not mentioned the premium rates in his speech last night.

"Why is he hiding this from the rakyat?" he asked.

Renewals not approved

Wong said at a recent dialogue session with Land & Survey Department officials, Sibu community leaders were informed that for agricultural land classified as town land and surburban land, the new rates would be RM230 per acre (compared with 25% to 30% as published on the department's website). The rates for agricultural country land is RM200 per acre (compared with 25% as published on the website).

The premium chargeable for alienation of state land for estate plantation is between RM200 and RM300 per acre only.

Wong said that the rates they announced at the dialogue are inconsistent with the premium rates on the department's website.

For example, on the website the premiums payable based on approved rates range from 40% to 60% for residential land in town (against 50% announced at the dialogue), 30% to 40% for residential surburban land (against 40%) and 25% to 35% for residential country land (against 25%).

The website gives the rates for industrial land in town as between 51% and 75% (against 61%), industrial surburban land as between 30% and 50% (against 45%) and industrial country land as between 25% and 35% (against 25%).

The rates for commercial town land range from 51% to 75% (against 55%), commercial surburdan land 35% to 50% (against 45%) and commercial commercial country land 25% to 35% (against 25%).

The issue of land lease renewal has hot up with the approach of the state elections this year. It afects largely urban dwellers in the major urban centres throughout Sarawak.

The DAP leaders there had been cases of applications for renewal of leases not approved by the authorities.

"I know of at least three cases," he said, citing as proof one case which he handled as a lawyer in Sibu. The lease to the land of 4.496 acres expired on February 2003 and described as Lot 93, Block 5, Engkilo Land District whose proprietor was a Supp leader.

"A check with the land registry shows the title has evaporated," Wong added.