Awang Tengah delivers his ministerial winding-up speech at DUN siting here today.
KUCHING (May 24): A total of 264 cases of forest offences have been recorded from 2020 to 2022, said Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan.
According to him, 15 cases have been registered for prosecution in court.
“Twelve cases have been resolved, with five accused have been convicted, while the other three cases are still in the trial process,” he said in his ministerial winding-up at the State Legislative Assembly (DUN) sitting here today.
Adding on, Awang Tengah who is Second Minister for Natural Resources and Urban Development, said during the same period, the sale value of the confiscated timber was RM4,027,150.
“Meanwhile, the compound collected for forest offences amounted to RM1.6 million,” he added.
Awang Tengah reiterated that the government is committed to ensuring that illegal logging activities are under control and will eradicate this activity to the root.
“Illegal logging problem in Sarawak is under control. This success is a result of an integrated enforcement strategy that has been implemented.
“Among them, strong political will from GPS government leadership such as the establishment of the State Task Force on Illegal Logging, clear policies and strong legal provisions as well as the use of advanced technology such as drones, satellite imaging, hyperspectral, geospatial and others,” he said.
In addition, he said the success was also contributed by the high commitment and integrity among the enforcement officers, collaboration and shared responsibility with other enforcement agencies, and strong support from the timber industry.
On a related note, Awang Tengah said the effectiveness of forest management is best measured by compliance with the criteria and indicators that have been set by an international standard such as the Malaysian Timber Certification Scheme (MTCS) which is also affiliated to the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) based in Switzerland and the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) based in Germany.
“Therefore, the Sarawak government has taken a stand to stipulate that all long-term forest license areas must be certified in 2025,” he added.
Awang Tengah also revealed that so far, 20 Forest Management Units (FMU) with an area of 1.78 million hectares have been certified.
Seven Forest Plantation Management Units (FPMU) with an area of 97,966 hectares were also certified under this initiative, he said.
“The total forest areas that have been certified is 1.88 million hectares.
“The achievement of this forest certification status is important to prove that the forest management practiced in Sarawak meets international standards and that the timber products produced can be marketed competitively in the global market,” he added.