SEREMBAN: Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Aminuddin Harun has rubbished claims that gold was being illegally mined along Sungai Lenggeng near here.
Responding to a video clip, which has gone viral on social media, he also denied allegations that both Lenggeng assemblyman Datuk Mohd Asna Amin and him had received millions from the sale of the prized mineral.
“First of all, I have absolutely no knowledge if there are gold deposits in the said area.
“But I wish to thank those behind the clip for the information and I have since instructed the Land and Mines as well as the Mineral and Geoscience departments to probe if there are gold deposits,” he told reporters after chairing the state exco meeting at Wisma Negri here.
In the clip, the sender claimed that instead of sand-mining activity, gold was being illegally mined along the river stretch.
It was alleged that the company mining the gold was a proxy for Aminuddin and Mohd Asna.
Aminuddin maintained that a company, which also owned land in the area, had been awarded a licence to mine sand as well as rehabilitate the river bank.
The project was a joint venture between the company and an agency under the Negri Sembilan Foundation.
He said if there were gold deposits in the area, the state government would issue a licence to parties keen to mine it.
“That will be a new source of revenue to the state’s coffers as the state government will earn royalties from the gold-mining activity,” he said.
Asked if the state has ever issued a licence to mine gold in the state, Aminuddin said only one had been given out.
“A company was given the licence to do so in Gemas but it is still continuing with exploration work for now,” he said.
