November 17, 2009 22:21 PM

Penang Government Not Informed Of RMAF Runway Extension Project

PENANG, Nov 17 (Bernama) -- The Penang government Tuesday claimed that they were not informed by the Federal government about the proposal to extend the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) airbase's runway in Butterworth here in the 10th Malaysia Plan (10MP).

State Health, Welfare, Caring Community and Environment Committee chairman Phee Boon Poh said: "As far as I'm concerned, there is no development planned on the Defence Ministry-owned land near the RMAF base, even though there was a prior instruction for the squatters to vacate the area.

"I have personally asked the relevant agency what they planned to do in the area because if the squatters are to be moved, they must have planned some kind of a project there, but they said nothing."

Hence, Phee, who is also Sungai Puyu assemblyman, asked the federal government to give fair consideration to the fate of the squatters who had been living in the area for a long time.

On Sunday, Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop was reported as saying that the squatter problem at the RMAF base must be resolved before the 10MP started in 2011.

He said this needed to be done quickly so as not to disrupt the runway extension project at the airbase.

-- BERNAMA

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