KOTA KINABALU: A political group has called on Sabah government to listen to the concerns expressed by villagers in Ranau who are anxious over talk that a private company was looking to start a gold mine in the district.
This came after it was reported that hundreds of residents in Kampung Bongkud and Namaus, some 100km from here, held a public protest to oppose efforts on gold prospecting in their backyard earlier this week.
As such, Parti Kerjasama Anak Negeri (Anak Negeri) urged the government to reject any application for a mineral prospecting license in the vicinity of Kampung Bongkud.
Its president Datuk Henrynus Amin said given the possibility of a mining operation in the area if gold or other minerals were found, villagers had a legitimate right to object to the issuance of a prospecting license in Kampung Bongkud and surrounding areas.
According to him, it was an established fact that gold mining near heavily populated areas would have serious and far reaching social and environmental implications.
"Gold mining traditionally uses toxic chemicals such as mercury to separate and collect gold nuggets which will certainly pollute streams and rivers including all the way to the (nearby) Sugut River," he said, in a statement here on Friday (July 21).
He said there were traditional practices at stake such as the freshwater fish-harvesting tagal system as well as other recreational activities along the river if the mining operations were to go ahead.
"Not to mention, there is the Sabah Water Department water intake point near Kampung Melinsou Ranau to supply water to villages in Ulu Sugut Ranau.
"So, before issuing any prospecting license to any company to explore mineral deposits in the heavily populated areas, Sabah government should seriously consider the interest of the people first," Henrynus added.
Local news outlets had reported that some 600 villagers were against efforts by a private company to undertake gold prospecting activities at Bukit Tompong.
Pita Yusuf, chairman of the ad-hoc committee against the mineral prospecting activities, said a gold mining operation would affect the lives of local residents in Kampung Bongkud and Namaus as well as the surrounding areas.
Pita said the mining operations could involve areas such as agricultural land, housing, schools, clinics and water catchment sites, among others.
District Officer Jumain Abd Ghani, however, was reported by the Daily Express on Thursday (July 20) to have urged the villagers to remain calm over reports of plans to look for gold and non radioactive-rare earth elements (NR-REE) in their area.
He said there was a meeting held recently between government department heads, village heads as well as representatives from the local community and the company.
The company, Jumain said, was only studying the mineral content in the earth and that it had not reached the mining stage.
Hence, the meeting was to establish the company’s plans to search for minerals in the village, he added.
In any case, Henrynus said, this was not the first time a private company has applied for a prospecting license for the same area.
He said previous attempts by the Mamut Copper Mine and an Australian company to prospect gold at Kampung Bongkud in the 1990s were rejected by the then state government following a strong opposition by villagers.
"As the MP for Kinabalu (Ranau) in 1998, in line with the wishes of the affected villages, I object strongly to the application for a prospecting license by a private company to an area near Kampung Bongkud," he added.
