PM admits bauxite mess a ‘mistake’

KUALA LUMPUR: Prime Minister Najib Razak has acknowledged that the government made a mistake in relation to the bauxite issue, but has vowed to deal with it.

In his speech at the Invest Malaysia 2016 forum, Najib said a sustainable economy required environmental protection.

“Of course, sometimes we make mistakes – the bauxite contamination on our East Coast is an example.”

He said the government was taking steps to deal with it, citing the extension of the moratorium on mining for another three months and the implementation of strict guidelines before the moratorium is lifted.

Last week, Natural Resources and Environment Minister Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar, in announcing the extension of the moratorium, said nearly four million tonnes of bauxite stockpiles still remained.

On a separate matter, Najib also stressed on greater female participation in corporate and public leadership.

He revealed that the Securities Commission was working on strengthening recommendations on gender diversity in the revised Malaysian Code of Corporate Governance, which would be released later this year.

He also called for the Capital Market to spearhead the development of a Capacity and Capability Building Programme to ensure at least 100 women were ready to take up board positions after the first year of the programme.

“I am delighted to say that in order to achieve our goal of women making up 30% of the boards of the top 100 companies in Malaysia, we only need another 130 women.

So, get hiring,” he quipped.

Last year, Najib launched the Malaysian chapter of the “30% Club” in a bid to help Malaysia achieve its 30% target for female representation on companies’ boards by 2016.

Najib said then that Malaysia was lagging behind its target of having more women represented on the boards of public companies.

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