Sarawak Forestry Corporation: No hanky-panky in felling of protected trees

KUALA LUMPUR, May 19 — The Sarawak Forestry Corporation (SFC) has refuted “unfair” allegations that its “rogue officers” had allowed the illegal felling of a protected tree species on native-owned land in the state.

The state-owned firm said preliminary findings of a probe into the case in Sungai Kain revealed that the complaint had nothing to do with illegal logging, revolving instead around a dispute between the timber firm involved and residents on compensation for entry into the land.

“The logging company concerned is the holder of a valid timber licence as well as permit to extract Engkabang logs from within the said timber licensed area, both issued by the Sarawak Forest Department,” SFC chief executive Wong Ting Chung was quoted as saying by The Borneo Post.

“A joint inspection of the area by SFC officers, the Sarawak Forest Department as well as complainants were carried out on May 12 whereby no wrongdoing on the part of the licensee could be ascertained based on existing harvesting control regulations,” he added.

Wong said the state government allows the felling of protected tree species like Engkabang in certain situations like salvage logging, on condition that the logging company gets an additional permit.

“However, it is necessary for the timber licensee to apply for additional permit from the Forest Department to harvest such protected tree species. It is therefore unfounded and unfair to blame SFC in this case,” he said.

In an earlier report by the Sarawak-based newspaper, state Land Development Minister Tan Sri James Masing accused SFC of having “rogue officers” who allegedly told longhouse villagers in Sungai Kain that the Engkabang trees that were felled on native land could be chopped down and sold.

The Sarawak state government recently teamed up with the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) to launch a major crackdown on the state’s illegal timber trade and tax evasion that had cost the government billions of ringgit in losses.

Termed “Ops Gergaji”, the MACC had last week carried out raids in 49 locations in Sarawak including Kapit, freezing a total of 519 accounts of companies and individuals including a state assemblyman with a total worth of almost RM700 million.