Director of Indonesian firm linked to haze faces detention when he next enters S’pore

SINGAPORE — The director of one of the Indonesian companies being looked into by the authorities over the haze could be detained the next time he enters Singapore, after he failed to turn up for an interview with the National Environment Agency (NEA).

The director, who has not been named, had been served with a Transboundary Haze Pollution Act (THPA) Notice for him to attend an interview with the NEA. But he did not turn up.

“NEA has obtained a court warrant to secure his attendance when he next enters Singapore, which is in accordance with the legal provisions of the THPA. This means that if the director enters Singapore, he can be detained by NEA officers for the purpose of investigations,” an NEA spokesperson said in a statement on Wednesday (May 11).

Singapore has issued notices to six Indonesia-based companies that started fires or let their concessions burn, and contributed to last year’s haze that blanketed Singapore and parts of the region.

Last month, Environment and Water Resources Minister Masagos Zulkifli said the director of one of the six companies had been served with a notice to provide information on how the company is mitigating fires on its land, and allow investigators to examine how the company is implementing these measures. “Should he not return, he will have violated our law and therefore, among others, we can arrest him upon entry later than the notice on which he is supposed to return,” said Mr Masagos, who declined to name the company.