Land owners sue S'wak gov't over Block D1

SIBU - One hundred and sixty-eight NCR land owners, whose land had been developed into oil palm plantations in Kanowit , have filed a legal suit against Pelita Holdings Sdn Bhd, the Sibu Superintendent of Lands and Surveys and the State Government of Sarawak.

In the suit filed at the Sibu High Court Registry, the defendants were accused of having failed, neglected and/or were negligent in protecting their interests in the said NCR land against the investors and third parties who were appointed to develop the land.

Kadam Anak Embuyang, Genta Anak Saka, Bartholomew Aji Lanyau, Rimong Anak Jantan and Laja @ Meris Anak Augustine Igoh filed a writ of summons on 14 September through Messrs Baru Bian Advocates and Solicitors on behalf of themselves and 163 other NCR land owners whose land was situated at Sg. Kelimut, Kanowit District also known as Block D1 in Kanowit District.


Negligence and fraud

In the writ, they want the Court to declare that the defendants were either jointly or severally negligent in not ensuring that the investors developed their NCR land profitably as they had guaranteed the owners.


Alternatively, they want also a declaration that they were defrauded by misrepresentation that the said venture would bring profit to them.

They also want the Court to declare a mandatory injunction against Pelita Holdings Sdn Bhd, its employees or servants or agents to cease operations and remove all structure and their equipments or machineries from the said NCR lands.

Damages sought

Additionally, the plaintiffs want the Court to award them exemplary and aggravated damages.

In their statement of claim, the landowners said at all material times they created, acquired and inherited the native customary rights over the land. They also claimed that Pelita Holdings was assigned as trustee for their interests, rights, shares and estate through the development of their NCR land into oil palm plantations.

They said that they were to receive profit or benefits after four years of planting oil palm on their NCR land and the Pelita Holdings and State government had breached their trust because the development of the NCR land was a total failure and there is no foreseeable opportunity of making money or reaping benefits or profits.

Venture turned out to be a failure

They said they were informed by the investors at a meeting in Kanowit that the joint venture on the NCR land with Pelita Holdings “has never achieved any profit so far” but was losing more than RM100 million.

As a result, the landowners suffered losses and damages as a consequence of the defendants’ negligence and breach of trust.

The venture between the NCR land owners and Pelita Holdings and the investors over the area of more than 51,630 hectares known as Block D1 had been hailed as a “model” joint venture when it was launched in August 1996.

Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud himself had officiated at the launching ceremony. - Malaysian Mirror