THE 155-year-old Nam Thean Tong Cave Temple recently recieved an eviction notice from the Kinta District's Land Office.
Board Chairman Chan Kwai Hong stated that the Kinta District Land Office ordered the management of the temple to vacate the premises within 30 days from Jan 7.
The temple was accused of violating section 425 of the National Land Code for mining land without permission and could be charged RM500,000,00, jailed for 5 month or both if found guilty.
“It is true that we do not have a lease. We have been trying to apply for it for decades but were not successful, there were also no reasons given to us as to why our applications were not approved,“ he told a local daily.
However, he said that he hoped that Perak's Menteri Besar Saarani Mohammad will heed his application and cancel the eviction notice sent to the 155-year-old temple in Ipoh because it is being used for religious purposes.
Nam Thean Tong Temple is known as one of the oldest cave temples and a popular tourist destination that has its own fair share of visitors.
Besides the Nam Thean Tong Cave Temple, 19 other temples in the district have reportedly been served with eviction notices.
On Monday, Saarani announced that he would be consulting with the land and mines department and oppostition parties, as well as bring up the issue at the state executive council meeting on Wednesday. He promised that following the meeting, the management of the various temples would be informed whether or not they can continue to operate, or will be forced to vacate their premises.
