Singapore groups say sorry

KOTA KINABALU: The Singapore International Foundation (SIF) and Wildlife Reserves of Singapore have apologised to the Sabah government over the allegation by the island republic’s zoo curator Tan Kit Sun on illegal logging at the Tabin Wildlife Reserve.

Chief Minister Datuk Chong Kah Kiat said yesterday he had accepted the apologies of SIF executive director Dr Tan Chi Chiu and Wildlife Reserves chief executive Bernard Harrison.

He said a probe by the state Forestry Department and Attorney-General’s Chambers concluded that there was no illegal logging at the Kalabakan timber concession area given to a Yayasan Sabah subsidiary.

On the apologies issued by the Singapore authorities, Chong said “Let this be a lesson for everyone.”

Last week, Chong had said that the allegation had jeopardised an ongoing probe of illegal logging at the 120,000ha Tabin wildlife reserve.

He said if the Singaporeans were serious in wanting to stop the illegal logging at Tabin, they should have reported the matter quietly to the Sabah Forestry Department instead of highlighting it in the media.

Chong said according to Harrison in his letter, Tan was the facilitator of a 21-member expedition including students of a Singapore polytechnic who were assisting the state Wildlife Department in carrying out a survey on the endangered Sumatran rhinoceros in the state.

On the unconfirmed claims of illegal logging at Kalabakan, he said reports from the department and Attorney General’s chambers indicated that no offences were committed in the area.

“The concession holder and its logging contractor were allowed to log there and the state did not lose any royalty,” Chong said.

Chong said this when asked about reports that the Special Enforcement Unit under the Chief Minister’s Department had seized 1,000 logs inside the Benta Wawasan timber concession area in Luasong in Kalabakan.

The reports also stated that a certain contractor linked to a “top Sabah politician” who tried to stop enforcers from acting against illegal logging in the Kalabakan area.

The area in question comes under the 200,000ha site for the controversial but failed China-Sabah joint venture pulp and paper mill project.

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