AUSTRALIAN rare-earth mining company Lynas poses no danger to the country, said Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

The 94-year-old leader said the government can’t always be listening to popular views, adding that his cabinet has already consulted experts in the field on the matter involving Lynas.

“We have sent experts to examine the place and they say there is no danger. But (some people) keep insisting there is. It is hard for the government to decide.

“People’s popular view is one thing, experts’ view is another thing. How do you go with it? If you go with popular views, there is nothing you can do.

“You can’t always listen to popular views and I want to stick by what has been reported by experts. This is not going to be dangerous.

“We have a choice to make – either get rid of this industry and lose credibility in terms of dealing with foreign direct investment, or we go ahead and take care of what is considered to be a problem,” Dr Mahathir said after an event in Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre today. 

Earlier today, about 400 protesters gathered in Kuantan in another show of growing discontent against Pakatan Harapan over its backtracking on manifesto promises with regard to Lynas, which has a refinery in Gebeng, Kuantan.

The rare-earth processing plant has been met with protests ever since it opened in 2012, and politicians who were then in opposition but now in government had pledged to close it down on the grounds that the plant was risk to the locals and environment.

“No U-turns, no U-turns! Don’t go back on your manifesto promise,” said a group of 30 protest leaders on the stage as they paraded a mock bus with cut-outs of PH leaders matched with “No U-turn” signs.

A picture of Dr Mahathir led the cut-outs, followed by PKR and Amanah presidents Anwar Ibrahim and Mohamad Sabu, and DAP adviser Lim Kit Siang.

The protesters, who began gathering since 7am in Kuantan, said Lynas had failed to fulfil its promise to repatriate waste generated from the rare-earth refinery.

It was reported that the Lynas plant holds 550,000 tonnes of low-level radioactive water leach purification waste and 1.2 million tonnes of exposed naturalisation underflow residue.

There is no conclusive evidence that Lynas’ waste has caused pollution, with a government review committee report last year stating that the plant’s operations posed a low risk.

On Thursday, the government announced that Lynas was granted a conditional licence extension of six months.

To continue operations here, it must move its cracking and leaching facilities overseas, identify a suitable site for a permanent deposit facility and then build it, and move its low-level radioactive waste abroad. – August 18, 2019.