“Bauxite mining is quick money. So, it’s only the lazy people who still support the rampant bauxite mining in the state. They don’t think long term. They are selfish,” she said at a press conference at Tanah Aina, the 11th pit stop for the Red2Green walkers.

Sharifah asked if it was really desperation that forced locals to resort to this trade. “Were they (pro-bauxite mining residents) starving before? Or they simply don’t have money at all?”

She said before bauxite mining was introduced to the capital of Pahang, locals could survive on what they were doing, adding “Where there’s a will, there’s a way”.

She expressed disappointment with the government over the fact that there were still no definitive guidelines and Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) to be enforced even though the moratorium on bauxite mining was about to end.

“ Many of us here have lost trust in the government. There is no SOP in Malaysia. They (government) have Acts, but in terms of enforcement, there’s none.” She said.

Following a public backlash last December, the Federal Government imposed a three-month moratorium on bauxite mining to clear stockpiles and alleviate pollution.

Yesterday, National Resources and Environment Minister Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar said the moratorium, due to end next month, might be extended if compliance issues were not addressed in time.