Is vested interest at work in Lynas?

LETTER | Looking at Lynas alone, I think one could perceive that Malaysia is either a stupid or corrupt country.

I just read that Australia has refused to take back the waste generated by Lynas. But did this decision surprise us at all? To me, this is totally within my expectation and prediction.

I am no expert to state exactly how dangerous the waste is. But I do know that it is dangerous enough for Australia not to have the rare earth plant established in Australia. I do know that it is dangerous enough for Australians not to have the waste shipped back to their country.

I do know that many Malaysians have expressed concern over this rare earth processing plant and had protested vehemently over its establishment earlier.

But the previous government ignored everything and went ahead to allow Lynas to operate in Malaysia.

We thought the new government would have taken immediate action to do something about it. However, it has been a year and I have lost track of what precisely is being done.

Before Pakatan Harapan gained federal power, many Malaysians have high expectations that lots of issues will be resolved once the government changed hand.

But do we see this happening? Now, I even see conflicting statements being made on Lynas. Those who were previously vocal on this issue have also faded away.

So, here is my question to the government: will Lynas be allowed to continue operating in Malaysia or not? If so, what is the plan to handle the waste? If the waste is benign, why did Australia refuse to take it back? If the waste is dangerous, how and what is the long-term plan for us to handle this?

Whatever the decisions, I hope the government will be straight and transparent with us. Sometimes, I could discern vested interest at work in the new government already.

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