IT is being argued by some quarters that the Gatco settlers, numbering over 400, have no legal right to get 3.2ha of land each, as they have asked for, from the Negri Sembilan state government.

Since they have exhausted their legal avenues through the courts, they have no choice but to accept the 1.6ha plus 0.8ha for buyers.

Buyers refer to a group of settlers who had left the scheme as well as close relatives of the original settlers.

Two groups of settlers

There are two groups of settlers in the scheme, the first one, those loyal to the Barisan Nasional government, have accepted 1.6ha for each family and 0.8ha for those wishing to purchase or buyers.

The remaining original settlers who have supported the opposition in general and Pakatan Harapan in particular consist around 110 settlers, both settlers and those who are regarded as buyers.

In fact, the original agreement with Gatco was for 4ha for each settler. Later it was reduced to 3.2ha.

Some have accepted the offer of 1.6ha and 0.8ha.

Refutation of rights

In fact, it is argued that the settlers who are asking for 3.2ha have no right whatsoever to demand from the government.

Since they lost their case in preventing Thamarai Holdings (which belongs to the Lotus Group of Companies) from buying the land, they have no rights whatsoever over the land.

As such, they have to accept the goodwill of the state government in accepting the 1.6ha and 0.8ha for those who want buy the land.

Pathetic argument

The argument that settlers have no right to the land is complete horse manure.

It is terrible betrayal of the long years of struggle and suffering of the settlers.

Yes, they lost their case in preventing a private company, Thamarai Holdings, from buying the land, but have they lost their right to 3.2ha of land that was affirmed by the court in the 1980s?

Those engaging in this nonsensical argument to deny the settlers their inherent right in the land scheme are not telling the truth.

They are trying to mislead the public as the Gatco settlers’ struggle has intensified over the years.

It will be an insult to the settlers to say that some political parties are misguiding them in demanding the impossible.

If the present decision-makers have done their job thoroughly to address the plight of the settlers, the matter would have been settled a few years ago as soon as the PH government came into power.

To say the provision of 1.6ha is an act of goodwill on the part of the state government is nothing but a mischievous attempt to rob the settlers of their fundamental rights.

Long years of struggle

The struggle of the settlers began not today or yesterday but more than 40 years ago.

They were brought from all over the country by the NUPW (National Union of Plantation Workers) through its company, Gatco (Great Alonioners Trading Company) to be settled in Kampung Gatco, Serting Ilir, Negri Sembilan.

They were promised 0.4ha land for a house and a 4ha land for agricultural cultivation.

The Gatco scheme sought to emulate the Felda scheme of land settlement.

While the Felda scheme was initiated by the federal government, the Gatco scheme was begun by the NUPW, a plantation union, through its wholly owned subsidiary, Gatco.

Without the backing of the federal government, the scheme ran into problems.

Insofar as the settlers are concerned, it was case of mismanagement and the lack of consultation with the settlers that led to the collapse of Gatco.

Some have mischievously described the whole episode as a classic case of “Get and Go”.

Gatco went into receivership after failing to settle loans borrowed from the banks.

Subsequently the land comprising the scheme was sold without any transparency to Thamarai Holdings by then then BN state government.

Why would Thamarai Holdings want to purchase the agricultural land in the scheme meant for the settlers despite the existence of a land dispute is not clear.

I am not sure what the deal really was between the BN state government and Thamarai Holdings then.

Thamarai Holdings later returned about 480ha out of the total 1,600ha to the state government to resolve the problem with the settlers.

The major portion of the original land meant for settlement is still under the ownership of Thamarai Holdings.

Those who are saying that settlers have no entitlement are the ones who once promised, not very long ago, that they would strive to get 3.2ha for them.

Earlier promise

It was also promised that those settlers who had been loyal to the BN government would get 1.6ha before they would be given 3.2ha.

Despite these promise, there has been an about-turn on the Gatco land matter.

Those acting on the behest of the state are saying that the settlers have no rights, that there is no such thing as 3.2ha for them and that they should just accept the goodwill offer to close the matter.

This is nothing but a classic betrayal of the settlers.

This is about how some self-serving politicians have used the settlers issue for their own political advancement.

Having attained their political objectives, the matter is not just forgotten but given a new interpretation.

Essentially, the matter is about whether the state government has the political will to provide the 3.2ha that was promised.

It is not about the settlers not having legal rights. It is about what the state government can do to address their long years of suffering.

Let us not get stuck in the imagined legal argument to deny what rightfully belongs to the settlers. – December 6, 2021.

* Ramasamy Palanisamy reads The Malaysian Insight.

* This is the opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insight. Article may be edited for brevity and clarity.