Noah's Ark sets up home in Johor

By Yeoh En-Lai, The Straits Times

The once-sunken Ark has resurfaced, only this time in Malaysia. Today is the

deadline for Noah's Ark Lodge operator Raymund Wee to vacate the former

premises at Seletar West Farmway 5. He has spent the past few weeks moving the

animals to his new sanctuary in Pekan Nanas, Johor. YEOH EN-LAI finds out that

it was not all plain sailing in the move.

   AFTER three extensions and a much-publicised row with the Agri-food and

Veterinary Authority of Singapore, Noah's Ark Lodge operator Raymund Wee is

hoisting anchor.

   After seven years, he has moved his Noah's Ark Lodge and more than 300

animals across the Causeway.

   The renamed Noah's Ark Natural Animal Sanctuary is less than half an hour's

drive from the Tuas checkpoint.

   Now, its former Seletar Farmway premises, once home to more than 500 dogs and

cats and other animals, has fewer than 30 dogs.

   The dogs left behind will be placed under the care of the Agri-food and

Veterinary Authority (AVA), as instructed by their owners who had had Mr Wee

look after them before.

   Each dog will have a microchip inserted under the skin, so that the AVA can

keep track of the animals.

   When The Sunday Times visited the old Ark last week, the Noah's Ark Lodge

sign had been dumped by the side of the entrance and replaced by a "Closed"

sign.

   The pond at the far end of the lodge had been drained. Empty pet cages were

stacked up and many potted plants had been removed, along with several

structures and support beams.

   Apart from the dogs, there were several doves there that were going to be

given away.

   "I have removed some of the structures I had built over the past seven years

as I am a caring person and I do not want anything to happen to Mr Thierry Lim

and the AVA when they come to this place," Mr Wee said.

   The AVA said it had given Mr Wee ample time to move the animals and find a

new home.

   Mr Chin Yen Neng, AVA's head of Infrastructure Management, said: "We gave him

three months, then another two one-month extensions, and after that, another

two weeks.

   "We have an obligation to the new tenant, Mr Thierry Lim.

   "We gave Mr Wee the additional time because we wanted minimal disruption to

the animals," he said.

   Mr Wee still contends that the initial three months should not be included in

the notice period, because the site was still being tendered out then.

   "I was confident of winning the bid in April. With this shelter, I helped to

answer the problem of strays, and I had invested so much here," said Mr Wee.

   "I built this place with love," he added.

   But there's no love lost between Mr Wee and the AVA.

   Mr Wee's battle to keep Noah's Ark Lodge at Seletar was very public. And not

always polite.

   His campaign included bombarding the Government with petitions of support and

attempting to discredit Mr Lim via his website.

   Still, he lost.

   Then came the mad scramble to relocate the animals. Some were too sick to be

moved quickly.

   The animals could only be transported to Malaysia at night because it was too

hot to do this in the daytime.

   The AVA will inspect the premises tomorrow morning. In a letter to the AVA,

which was obtained by The Sunday Times, Mr Wee said: "During the past 10 weeks

I had to find an alternative piece of land to relocate, clear and prepare a

piece of wild land, and build up a shelter for the animals.

   "Even if this were to be done in Singapore, it would take a minor miracle to

put all these together in such a short time."

   When asked what his fondest memory of the Seletar premises was, he said: "The

fight to keep this place. But now, we'll make a fresh start."

   TENANCY: End of extension

   IN 1987, the land at Seletar West Farmway 5 where Noah's Ark Lodge is sited

was tendered out to corporate trainer Harry Quek to run a dog-breeding and

kennelling business.

   Six years ago, 51-year-old Raymund Wee sublet it from Mr Quek and started

Noah's Ark Lodge. * Last December, Mr Quek told the Primary Production

Department (now the Agri-food and Veterinary Authority) that he did not want

to renew his tenancy.

   Mr Wee asked to be allowed to continue there.

   But the AVA turned him down, because Mr Quek was not allowed to sublet, under

the tenancy agreement.  In January, a public tender was announced.  Three

months later, AVA's head, Dr Ngiam Tong Tau, announced that dog-breeder and

handler Thierry Lim would take over the site.

   He had outbid Mr Wee by $12,101 per annum.  Mr Wee was given until May 15 to

quit but got two extensions of a month each until July 15.  Sometime last

month, a Singapore businessman offered him a 10-ha plot of land in Pekan

Nanas, Johor, which his family had used as a vacation home.  The AVA said Mr

Wee was granted a total of 22 export permits from July 7 to move the animals

over to Johor, but he said some of the forms were inadequately filled and he

was nearly turned back at the border.  On July 15, he got another two-week

extension. This ends today.

Source: The Straits Times
Date: 30 July 2000