KOTA BARU: Kelantan Pakatan Harapan (PH) chairman Senator Datuk Husam Musa is urging the state government to conduct an investigation into iron ore mining activities near Kuala Koh to establish whether it is linked to the deaths of members of the Batek Orang Asli tribe there.
Husam said the state government must probe the issue as the iron ore mine had been operating without a licence.
“Water, Land and Natural Resources Deputy Minister Tengku Zulpuri Shah Raja Puji, during his recent visit to the Kuala Koh Orang Asli settlement, had said that the mine was operating illegally,” said Husam.
“No signboards were placed there and even during the visit (June 9), the factory was still operating.
“Its supervisor admitted that they used explosives in the mining activities, but the type of explosive could not be determined.
“Even until yesterday, heavy machinery belonging to the mine were spotted at the site.”
Husam said the authorities had yet to seal the mine.
“The mine is located close to the Orang Asli settlement in Kuala Koh.
“There are two rivers flowing towards the settlement, which may have caused the outbreak,” he said.
The Ministry of Water, Land and Natural Resources said yesterday that it would investigate claims that water pollution was the cause of a pneumonia outbreak among the Orang Asli community in Kampung Kuala Koh.
The ministry had pledged a thorough probe to determine whether tainted water sources was behind bacterial infections in the community, which had resulted in several fatalities.
Claims recently emerged that water sources used by the villagers had been contaminated due to iron ore mining nearby.
Deputy Kelantan Menteri Besar Datuk Mohd Amar Nik Abdullah had recently rejected claims that iron ore mining was a factor in the deaths.
He said reports from the state Health Department showed that in this case, pneumonia was an air-borne disease and not due to water.