DAP will continue to persuade Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad to understand environmental concerns posed by the Lynas rare earth plant in Kuantan, said party secretary-general Lim Guan Eng.

Lim also admitted that the party had failed to convince Dr Mahathir to shut down the plant.

He also said it was completely wrong for Umno and PAS politicians to label DAP as the kingmaker in Pakatan Harapan.

He was referring to former prime minister Najib Razak’s remarks over the weekend that DAP ministers had been given posh jobs, causing escalating tension amongst the Malays.

“Such lies by Najib is immediately exposed when DAP did not succeed in convincing Prime Minister Dr Mahathir to close down the Lynas rare earth plant.

“But we will continue trying to persuade the prime minister to understand the genuine concerns of environmentalists.

“And yet Najib contradicts himself by asking so-called ‘kingmaker’ DAP leaders to resign for failing to close down the Lynas rare earth plant,” said the finance minister in a statement today.

He also slammed the opposition and the newspapers they control for failing to highlight the remarkable success of the PH government in recording a higher 2019 second quarter economic growth of 4.9% compared to the first quarter’s 4.5%.

He said Malaysia was the only Asean country that has recorded higher economic growth in the second quarter than the first quarter of 2019.

He further said that the PH government is committed to listen to the people, including differing views, even when decisions are made to actively explore better alternatives.

“This is part and parcel of democracy and DAP leaders will continue to play an active part towards better decision-making that will improve democracy, public health and safety as well as the living standard of the rakyat.”

Yesterday, about 400 protesters gathered in Kuantan in another show of growing discontent against PH 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 the opposition but now in government had pledged to close it down on the grounds that the plant was a risk to the locals and environment.

The protesters said Lynas had failed to fulfil its promise to repatriate waste generated from the rare-earth refinery.

Last 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 disposal facility and then build it, and move its low-level radioactive waste abroad.

Dr Mahathir said yesterday that Lynas posed no danger to the people, adding that this was based on views given to the government by experts.

He said it was not possible to listen to popular views all the time, alluding to the loud voices from within his own government for the plant to be shutdown. – August 19, 2019.