“WICKED” is the word used by Economic Affairs Minister Mohamed Azmin Ali to describe the Federal Land Development Authority’s (Felda) past management which brought the organisation to its knees.

In an interview with Astro Awani tonight, Azmin said there is no better word to describe the organisation’s past administration due to the financial irregularities and mismanagement.

“Wicked is a big word but I have no choice but to now move forward and fend for the settlers for a long time to come,” he said.

Felda had performed well when it was helmed by Taib Andak and Muhammad Alias Raja Muhammad Ali, during which it had a healthy balance sheet.

Azmin said prior to the listing of FGV holdings Bhd on Bursa Malaysia’s Main Market in 2012, Felda’s net profit stood at between RM200 million and RM1.2 billion.

However, its cash balance has also been on the downtrend over the years, depleting to RM35 million as at May 9, 2018 from RM400 million in 2017.

Its liabilities on the other hand, surged from RM1.2 billion in 2007 to RM14.4 billion in 2017.

He said Felda only received an average of RM400 million from FGV per annum, as opposed to the RM800 million required to operate and manage the plantations and settlers.

According to the land lease agreement (LLA) inked between the two, Felda was to receive from FGV RM248 million and a share of profit of 15% for the 99 year lease of its commercial land, annually.

He said Felda was also forced to buy 37% equity stake in Eagle High Plantations for RM900 million, an inflated price.

“To me this is a betrayal by the previous management which lacked in transparency, integrity and honesty. They have betrayed the support and acceptance given by settlers.”

With the critical state of Felda’s finances, Azmin said it will be tough to manage the plantations and settlers.

Although the cash strapped government will be injecting a whopping RM6.3 billion to rescue Felda, its priority is to plug the leakages without burdening the settlers.

In line with the government’s principle of accountability and transparency, Azmin said it was crucial to table the white paper in Parliament and reveal the findings to the rakyat and the settlers.

“The government will require a big sum to carry out new programmes. The people have to know that we have inherited a complicated situation.”

“The purpose of the white paper is not only to reveal the mismanagement and irregularities to the people but also to share on the direction that Felda is about to embark on.”

The Gombak MP said the findings of the white paper have been well received by the settlers.

On a national level, Azmin said the challenge for the government is to strike a balance between economic growth and its fiscal deficit.

He added that the high national debt, if not properly managed will leave the government with limited resources for development expenditure.

“When we took over Putrajaya, the national debt was at almost RM1 trillion which equates to 83% of the gross domestic product.” – April 23, 2019.