Tun Dr. Mahathir said yesterday that the government is waiting for Lynas to come up with a plan to deal with their waste. It certainly defies logic why the Atomic Energy Licensing Board (AELB) and the Department of Environment (DOE) have allowed Lynas to operate and generate over a million tons of radioactive contaminated wastes over the past 7 years without a waste management plan. In our country, authorities will not even allow a house owner to move in if the house doesn’t have a toilet.
Over the past 8 years, the people have strongly and repeatedly voiced their strongest objections against Lynas. They have put forth facts and evidence on the :
- blatant violations of laws and regulations as well as incompliance with international best practices and Lynas’s own commitments;
- long-term health risks to our people;
- long-term financial burden to future generations to manage Lynas’s waste;
- massive irreversible damage to our environment;
- lost of hundreds of hectares of precious productive land forever to bury Lynas’s toxic wastes;
- threat to our national image, dignity and sovereignty.
So, if the PH government decides to give Lynas the licence to generate more radioactive waste in our country, please put forth a detailed explanation, supported by solid facts and figures, to the people. Tell us how much is our country making out of Lynas? What are the future earnings expected? Please also show us the details of your environmental accounting analysis especially the quantification of the long-term environmental consequences, costs to remediate contaminated sites as well to as manage and maintain Lynas’s radioactive dump after they are long gone. Is the deal on Lynas just about money or is there something else? These information are vital in order for the people to evaluate whether it is worthwhile to sacrifice so much – our children’s wellbeing, environment, a big chunk of our land and national dignity, to keep Lynas here.
The previous BN government may have allowed Lynas to set foot in this country due to greed and stupidity. However, it will be completely beyond logic for the current PH leadership to continue to endorse wrongdoings. Unless, there are some dark secrets with the Lynas deal that the people don’t know of? Please tell us so that we can share the burden with you and together we can find a solution to the challenges faced.
As the rakyat of Malaysia Baru, the people deserves to know the reasons if we are forced to swallow Lynas’s toxic radioactive wastes and subject our children to so much risks.