THE royal commission of inquiry(RCI) to look into the mass graves and alleged human trafficking at Wang Kelian will be headed by former chief justice Arifin Zakaria, said Home Affairs Minister Muhyiddin Yassin.

He said the Yang Di-Pertuan Agong had consented to the appointment of the RCI members.

Arifin will be assisted by former inspector-general of police Norian Mai.

Muhyiddin will meet the RCI members next week to brief them and present their appointment letters.

He said the RCI will have six months to prepare a report on the case.

Muhyiddin was speaking to the media in Putrajaya.

In May 2015, 139 graves and 28 abandoned human trafficking camps were discovered on top of Bukit Wang Burma in Wang Kelian on the Malaysia-Thailand border in Perlis. The discovery came on the heels of the Andaman Sea Rohingya crisis, which saw thousands of the persecuted minority group fleeing Myanmar aboard rickety boats as overland people-smuggling routes into Malaysia were shut down.

Commenting on the Semenyih by-election, Muhyiddin said he was working not only for strong support for Bersatu, but also higher voter turnout at the polls on Saturday.

“We’ve worked hard and we are nearing the end of the polls. We are confident and the response has been encouraging following the ground visit by some of the party’s top guns.”

He said he hopes that voters will use the opportunity to exercise their rights at the ballot box. – February 28, 2019.