SEGAMAT: Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim will call Felda management to the Prime Minister’s Office on Monday (July 6) to discuss long-standing issues affecting settlers, particularly housing for the second generation.
Anwar said the meeting would look into problems that had dragged on for years, including house lots, stalled approvals and the lack of basic infrastructure in several Felda settlements.
The Prime Minister and Pakatan Harapan chairman said the government had already decided late last year to work towards a solution for second-generation settlers.
"The policy decision is to find a solution so that there is protection and assurance over housing sites for the second generation.
"There are approvals that are limited, and there are also approvals given without infrastructure.
"People cannot build houses if electricity, water supply and drainage are not resolved," he said at the Jelajah Harapan Felda Bersama PMX programme at Dataran Putra Palong Timur 2 here on Sunday (July 5).
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Anwar, who is also Finance Minister, said he could not announce further details during the campaign period due to election regulations.
However, he said work on the matter had started since the end of last year, with further discussions to be held with elected representatives and Felda representatives.
"Tomorrow, I will call Felda management to the Prime Minister’s Office. On Tuesday, we have Hari Peneroka.
"Within two weeks, the MPs will meet settler representatives to discuss what has been decided and what can be done," he said.
Anwar said he would also chair a meeting within a month involving the Sarawak Premier, mentris besar and chief ministers to discuss matters that required cooperation between the federal and state governments.
He said this was important as Felda came under the Federal Government, while land matters were under the jurisdiction of the states.
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"Felda is a federal agency, but the land belongs to the state. Basic infrastructure must also be discussed with the state.
"When the Federal Government and state governments have a good relationship, the people benefit. In this case, the settlers benefit," he said.
Anwar said this year’s national Hari Peneroka celebration would be held in Temerloh, Pahang, instead of Kuala Lumpur, as such events should be brought closer to the settler community.
He said the celebration could be rotated to other states, including Johor, in future, provided there was cooperation from the state government.
Anwar also took aim at past Felda governance, saying the agency’s financial problems were caused by weak management and leadership, not the settlers.
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"Felda was founded by the late Tun Abdul Razak Hussein to give land to those who had none.
"But after some had been in power for too long, they became arrogant and wanted to profit from the sweat of the people below.
"When they came to villages and Felda areas, they spoke about protecting the Malays. But when entrusted with responsibility, Malay funds were misused and Felda suffered losses," he said.
Anwar said since he became Finance Minister in 2023, the Federal Government had to provide nearly RM1bil a year to deal with Felda’s legacy debts.
"This is not the fault of the settlers. It is the fault of the management, the leadership and those entrusted with responsibility," he said.
