What have you been doing, Pahang Ruler questions Palanivel

Commenting on the recent mudslide which claimed five lives, Sultan Ahmad Shah said he was unhappy of the lack of action by Palanivel, despite the occurrence of such incidents in the past.

“What has he done? Nothing… The people suffer mentally and physically when such incidents happen. The people voted him in but is this how he repays them?” the Ruler was quoted saying in a Malay daily, the Berita Harian today.

Sultan Ahmad Shah reminded Palanivel to fulfill his obligation to the people who voted him during the 13th general election or risk losing their votes in the next election.

“I am embarrassed over this incident. Tell your minister to give importance to his constituency and do something about this quickly. I am serious about this,” he added.

The Ruler had also ordered all illegal land clearing activities to stop immediately to prevent future occurrence of landslides and ordered stern action to be taken against those responsible.

On Sunday, Palanivel who is also the Natural Resources and Environment Minister said one million trees will be planted in Cameron Highlands, especially on hill slopes to reduce soil erosion and avoid landslides.

Palanivel said the programme to plant trees would start in stages for over a three-year period and added that the ministry would also acquire 11 plots of land along the river banks of Sungai Bertam, Ringlet here, currently owned by individuals, under the Land Acquisition Act 1960.

Meanwhile, Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) said it will place its officers in Cameron Highlands to increase close monitoring for corruption activities at the location.