‘Kampung Lubok Bunting villagers never appointed anyone to object to land devt’
KUCHING: The community chief ( KK) of Kampung Lubok Bunting yesterday clarified that villagers there have never appointed any person to object to any case pertaining to land development in Simunjan.
Aju Pet, 67, even lodged a report at the Simunjan district police headquarters with the aim of steering clear of another group of villagers from Kampung Lubok Bunting, who recently called upon the Malaysian AntiCorruption Commission (MACC) to probe a land venture there.
In a written statement to the police, Aju said he made the report to stress that villagers in Kampung Lubok Bunting did not discuss the matter as it is pending a court decision.
He added that it is not appropriate for the matter to be made known publicly.
More importantly, Aju said villagers in Kampung Lubok Bunting never appointed any individual to bring up any objection against the land development in the village.
Last week, a group of villagers from Kampung Lubok Bunting, led by legal counsel Dominique Ng, requested MACC to probe a case where they alleged that land had been taken by a company.
Through Ng, these villagers said the Sarawak government had set aside the land – over 1,000 acres – in Kampung Lubok Bunting for the purpose of village expansion.
“The villagers then entered a joint venture with a company following a letter of offer dated Jan 10, 2000 to develop that piece of land.
“Even though the land is for village expansion, I don’t think they (villagers) mind, as it is for development. More so, they don’t have the capacity to clear the land. But what happens now is that their land doesn’t belong to them anymore,” Ng had told reporters outside the MACC Sarawak headquarters here.
The same day, Assistant Minister of Entrepreneur and Small, Medium Enterprise (SME) Development Datuk Mohd Naroden Majais, when contacted by The Borneo Post, dismissed speculation that he was involved in the controversial land venture claimed by the group.
The Gedong assemblyman said he had no vested interest in the land deal which he had helped seal through then chief minister – now Yang di-Pertua Negeri Sarawak – Tun Pehin Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud, for the villagers many years ago.
“As far as I remember, I was helping them (villagers) on two things, namely those who do not have any land and those who have land but left idle and willing to surrender their land to the investor ( Inderanika Jaya Sdn Bhd).
“They (villagers) entered a joint venture (JV) with them ( Inderanika Jaya) and my role was to assist only. Those who did not have any land were given the land without paying a sen.
“Each head of the family was given one free share and everyone has received interim dividend right from first year (when) the investor entered the site,” said Mohd Naroden.