‘Politics put Felda in debt’

TAMPIN: Excessive political interference turned Felda from a billion-ringgit profit-­making plantation giant into an agency saddled with almost RM10bil in debt, says Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

He said Felda had once been among the world’s largest and most successful plantation organisations, generating billions of ringgit in annual profits and ­providing good returns for settlers and their families.

“I took over the responsibility of overseeing Felda because the agency was burdened with debts of almost RM10bil.

“This is not ­politics; it is a reality,” he said in his speech at the Semarak Kenega­raan programme at Kem Syed Sirajuddin.

He said Felda had flourished under the stewardship of early leaders such as its founding chairman Tun Raja Muhammad Alias Raja Muhammad Ali and Tan Sri Taib Andak, the agency’s second chairman.

“Felda was managed efficiently.

“It became the biggest plantation in the world, generating ­billions of ringgit in profits every year while settlers and their ­families benefited from the returns,” he said.

However, Anwar said the situation began to deteriorate about seven or eight years ago following changes in management and what he described as excessive political interference.

On the ground: Anwar attending an event with Negri Sembilan village development and security committee leaders in Lukut. — FAIHAN GHANI/The Star

He stressed that the problems were not caused by the settlers, rejecting any suggestion that they were to blame for the agency’s financial woes.

Felda, established in 1956 to eradicate rural poverty through land development and oil palm and rubber cultivation, remains one of Malaysia’s largest statutory agencies, with more than 100,000 settler families nationwide.

The Prime Minister also said the Cabinet will decide whether to make public the Royal Commission of Inquiry’s (RCI) report on Tabung Haji once it has been formally tabled and reviewed.

“There has been some discussion about the RCI. I do not wish to elaborate. Once the report is presented to the Cabinet, we will make a decision. The report must first be read,” he said.

At another event, Anwar called on the people to choose leaders who have proven themselves through their service to the ­people instead of those driven by personal interests.

He said while anyone can offer to be a leader, the true test is when it comes to fulfilling their tasks sincerely.

“A leader should be evaluated based on their trustworthiness,” he said at a meeting with Negri Sembilan village development and security committee leaders.