Malacca State Assembly: Veterinary department erred in closing pig farms
26 July 2006MALAYSIA - An Exco member yesterday admitted the Veterinary Services Department erred when it ordered, two months ago, the closure of pig farms in Malacca due to the Japanese Encephalitis outbreak in 1998.State Housing, Local Government, Environment and Transport committee chairman Datuk Wira Poh Ah Tiam said the directive was "wrongly" based on an April 10, 1999 decision of the executive council.
"I have minutes of the Exco meetings on March 31, April 7 and April 16 which showed that the council decided to close only four pig farms — three in Jasin and one in Ayer Salak.
"However, the letter stated all pig farms had to cease operations because of an Exco decision dated April 10. There is no such thing; there wasn’t even an Exco meeting on that date," Poh said yesterday.
He said following the latest Exco decision to allow pig farming in the State, all previous eviction notices issued by the Alor Gajah Municipal Council, the Land Office and the VSD from late last year, were considered void.
Earlier in the House, Poh told Goh Leong San (DAP-Banda Hilir) that pig farms in the State were not ordered closed because of the 1998 JE outbreak.
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Source: New Straits Times
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