FELDA Chini deep in central Pahang, is a snapshot of the social decay within the land reform scheme that in the Merdeka-era lifted hundreds of  thousands out of poverty.

According to the settlers, at least five deaths occur annually due to HIV infection and drug addiction.

Felda Chini Youth movement chief Mohd Firdaus Salleh said HIV deaths had reduced lately as drug addicts no longer used needles.

“Now they use synthetic drugs without the needle and the side effects are different,” Firdaus told The Malaysian Insight during a visit to the settlement, which is about an hour’s drive from the state capital of Kuantan.

It is a open secret in Felda Chini that every family had at least one case of drug addiction, said Firdaus.
 
“There is a record of a 13-year-old girl giving birth out of wedlock. On average there are two illegitimate births a year here,” he said.

These are just two of the social problems that plague every Felda settlement in the country these days, said settlers, politicians and activists familiar with Felda.

The land reform scheme introduced by the second prime minister, Abdul Razak Hussein is acknowledged worldwide as a successful initiative to eradicate poverty.

There are 112,000 settler families in schemes in Peninsular Malaysia. Most of them are in Pahang and Johor, where the country’s drug addicts are concentrated.

The Statistics Department reported that there were 30,844 drug addicts in Malaysia last year.

Johor had 2,541 drug addicts and Pahang, 2,066,  in 2015. About 95% were male.

Felda researcher Hisommudin Bakar said the settlements’ remoteness and distance from enforcement authorities made them optimal breeding grounds for social ills.

“My research involved settlements in Pahang and Johor. Social problems linked to alcohol abuse and theft are evident in Felda areas. Substance abuse has been the main problem since the formation of Felda (in 1956),” said Hisommudin of Ilham Centre.

In the early stages, many heroin addicts died of AIDS because of widespread sharing of needles, he said.

New drugs such as methamphetamine have decreased the spread of HIV but addiction remains a problem.

The economic factor

A sputtering economy in which low skilled locals are retrenched has also contributed to the number of delinquents, said Firdaus of Felda Chini.

In the past, the young people of Chini would leave to find better jobs in Penang, Johor and the Klang Valley.

However, when factories and companies were closed down, these people had no choice but to go home.

“A lot of my friends who worked in the city have returned home to their families after factories were shut down or their businesses failed.

“They used to visit home alone but now they come with their wives and kids and they all stay at their parents’ or their in-laws place’.

“Can you imagine several families living under one roof? A lot of problems will arise. Some kids will hang out with their friends to escape and that is where the problems start.”

With few jobs available for Felda youth, it is easy for them to become wayward and get into trouble, said Firdaus.

“The youth are in dire need of job opportunities. Right now, they are competing with immigrant labourers for jobs.

“What’s heartbreaking is that the immigrant labourers are paid more than the locals,” he said.

Not unique

Felda is aware of the problems and is working hard to fix them, said its chairman Shahrir Samad.

“The Malay settlers’ problems are what other Malay communities are facing today.

“That’s why we have to solve these problems by motivating them through national institutions, especially the media,” Shahrir told The Malaysian Insight.

Shahrir said Felda is working with the National Anti-Drug Agency to curb substance abuse.

“A lot of effort went into creating training schemes for those involved in drug abuse. Some have succeeded, some have not,” said Shahrir.

He said he had tried to deal with as many complaints as he could in the short time he had been in Felda, and that he had seen a decrease in the number of complaints.

“But we cannot say that everything is perfect.”

Shahrir was appointed chairman in January, 

Mersing MP Dr Abdul Latiff Ahmad said drug addiction was not unique to Felda.

“It is the same problem, in Malay villages or in Felda. Those who come to Felda are also from the villages. They brought the problem to Felda so we cannot put the blame on Felda,” he told The Malaysian Insight.

For Persatuan Anak Peneroka Felda (Anak), the social problems are due to the failure of youth groups to hold meaningful programmes for the settlers’ children.

“The Felda Malaysian Youth Council should provide healthy activities for the youth,” said Anak president Mazlan Aliman.

“What is the council’s role? If it is not playing its role, the youths will suffer the consequences,” said Mazlan. – November 26, 2017.