Selangor settlers up in arms over land ownership

Settlers in Tanjung Pasir, Selangor, are seeking to meet with Menteri Besar Amirudin Shari to resolve land issues which have been ongoing for more than 40 years.

V Jayakumar, who represented the settlers, said they had been working on oil palm plantations since 1967 but had yet to receive ownership grants.

“All of sudden, we hear that two private companies were granted a lease of 21 years for around 200 acres of land.

“The companies will also be collecting rent from settlers in a nearby area, Perangsang, now that they have the lease,” he said during a protest by the settlers at Tanjung Jaya, Bestari Jaya, today.

Jayakumar said the settlers had been asking for grants since 2004, to no avail.

“We sent letters to the menteri besar’s office last year but the office replied with nothing concrete in their response. We didn’t even understand what the office was trying to say,” he said, adding that they had sent another letter in April.

There are currently 400 settlers in Tanjung Pasir.

They say that a road was built by one of the companies seven months ago without them being informed.

Tanjung Karang MP Noh Omar who was also present today urged the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission to investigate the companies, saying a report had already been lodged in 2019.

“Both of the companies had the same address and were only founded in July 2018.

“The companies were awarded the lease two months after their establishment for agricultural purposes, but we are worried that they actually want to mine sand,” he said.

Noh added that the state government should engage with the settlers before taking any action that affect their livelihoods.