By Yasmin Ramlan
SHAH ALAM, Jan 15 — Selangor Menteri Besar Dato’ Seri Amirudin Shari has dismissed allegations that thousands of hectares of land in Klang being used for vegetable farming is owned by foreigners.
This is after a media report claimed that non-citizens are exploring land in Johan Setia to grow crops.
Amirudin said the details in the article are merely speculative.
“There might be an intrusion by or the presence of some (foreign) workers there, but there is no ownership by foreigners,” he told reporters after his New Year’s mandate to state civil servants at the State Secretariat Building, here, today.
“We are indeed working on a solution because the presence of foreigners is a problem that has been going on for decades, but the land has never been owned by foreigners.”
“It is owned by the locals. Maybe they (locals) employ foreign workers to help cultivate the farm,” he said.
Earlier today, Utusan Malaysia reported that foreigners are now venturing into areas in Johan Setia to grow vegetables.
The article stated that the agricultural land there, estimated at 2,585.4 hectares in size, has the capacity to yield tonnes of vegetables a day.
According to Amirudin, the area contributes approximately 20 to 30 per cent of the supply of green vegetables to the Klang Valley and is one of the main producers besides Cameron Highlands.
“If the authorities wish to conduct raids (on foreigners), by all means. However, we need to ensure the farm has sufficient manpower to maintain vegetable supply, especially for the Klang Valley region.
