WHITE PAPER ON FELDA ISSUE
Govt committed to revitalising agency for settlers’ wellbeing, says Azmin
THE government has decided to present a white paper in Parliament in the next session to expose the real situation of the Federal Land Development Authority (Felda) and its strategic rehabilitation plan.
Economic Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Azmin Ali said Felda was facing a critical cash flow problem, but the government was committed to revitalising the agency for the wellbeing of its settlers, in line with the Land Development Act 1956 goals.
“The immediate focus of Felda’s new board and management is on strengthening the agency’s cash flow through discussions with creditors to restructure the agency’s loans of RM8.025 billion.
“The next step taken to strengthen cash flow is by selling non-strategic assets, such as properties abroad and in the country,” he said when responding to a question from Ma’mun Sulaiman (Warisan-Kalabakan) during a question-and-answer session at the Dewan Rakyat here yesterday.
Azmin said the focus of the management was on implementing the statutory obligation for Felda settlers, hence, they could rest assured that their advance loans for living costs and advance payments for their harvest would be paid according to schedule.
The Pakatan Harapan government, in its 100-day election manifesto, promised to abolish 50 per cent of the settlers’ debts, which resulted from advance loans for living costs for replanting of crops.
Azmin said Felda’s financial position was a legacy of weak leadership in corporate governance and irresponsible financial management.
However, he said, the government was confident that the new management of Felda would adhere to the principles of accountability and good governance to ensure the agency’s recovery and sustainable development process.
On whether Tawau Oil Products (TOP), a subsidiary of Felda Vegetable Oil Products Sdn Bhd (FVOP) would be closed, he said FVOP was a subsidiary of FGV Holdings Bhd, hence, it was not under Felda management.
FGV was undergoing a rationalisation process to boost its value and performance, but had no plan to close the TOP plant, he added.
To Ma’mun’s question on the status of Felda’s agreement with the Sabah government to allocate 40,000ha to settlers as only 9,000ha had been distributed, Azmin said the deal would be looked into again as the land distribution had been halted. In 2012, Felda handed over 400,000ha to FGV for listing purposes, he said. However, he added that FGV was having problems paying dividends and fair profit-sharing to Felda, which was one of the reasons why it was facing financial management problems.
“Everything will be stated in the white paper so that Felda’s board of directors and management can re-examine the merits of the listing by taking into account FGV’s views.
“What is important is the interests of settlers can be guaranteed in the future, and better strategic plans can be devised to ensure land schemes are developed more efficiently and responsibly.”