THE quarrel between Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and opposition leader Muhyiddin Yassin over who had actually resolved the debt issues of Felda settlers is not helping anyone, activists said.

They said both had played a role in the issue but it was now time for the government to implement the Felda recovery plan.

The recovery plan, in the form of a white paper, was tabled in parliament in 2019 when Muhyiddin was the prime minister.

Persatuan Anak Peneroka Kebangsaan (Anak) president Mazlan Aliman said Anwar and Muhyddin had both done so much for Felda.

“We cannot deny that both had played important roles; I was involved in many of the discussions and outreach programmes.

“It is best for the unity government and the opposition to implement the recovery plan that was tabled in parliament. In the next sitting, it would be good if the white paper could be discussed.

“There is no benefit in pointing fingers because this issue will only cause more confusion for Felda settlers,” said Mazlan.

Anwar and Muhyiddin have been fighting over who had signed off a debt waiver scheme for the Felda settlers.

Anwar said Muhyiddin’s Perikatan Nasiona government had not set aside money in the 2021 and 2022 national budgets to resolve Felda’s debt issues.

Muhyiddin took offence to this, saying he had waived Felda settlers’ debts in 2020. He demanded an apology from Anwar for slandering him. 

Last week, Anwar released part of the Assignment for Financial Service Reserve Account agreement on the government guarantee to Felda as proof that he had waived the settlers’ debts.

To this, Muhyiddin said the documents were about sukuk payments and unrelated to the settlers’ debt waiver.

They are now both suing each other over the matter.

Stop campaigning on Felda

Rauzan Esa, a second-generation Felda settler, in Sungai Sibol in Johor, said it is the responsibility of the government to settle the debts which were accrued because of the mismanagement of Felda.

Rauzan urged political leaders to stop using Felda as a campaign issue in the elections.

“Outsiders will think that we Felda settlers are spoiled and begging the government for a solution but in truth, we only want Felda to recover.

“There are many of us who have managed our land without debt and are earning a good income.

“It is the responsibility of the government to settle Felda’s debts because the problems are due to bad decisions and mismanagement. 

“The problem started when FGV was listed. Before it was listed it made a profit of more than RM1 billion a year to enable Felda to operate and manage the affairs of settlers without funding from the government.

“What is important now is to ensure that Felda can return to its original function and that this does not happen again,” he said.

He added that the government must re-examine the settlers’ land management model.

He said Felda must be restructured with “a ruthless and efficient management”.

Mohd Fadli Zainal Abidin, a Felda Sungai Tengi committee member in Hulu Selangor, said Anwar and Muhyiddin had both helped Felda settlers.

“It is hard to say who is right or wrong. Each has done something but today we see this is a political matter,” said Fadli. 

The Felda white paper, released on April 10, 2019, found failure in the management of Felda.

It said the board of directors or management failed to conduct due diligence before making investments and had a culture of weak and inconsistent compliance to policies.

The white paper suggested a restructuring of Felda’s companies and investments and recommended that the agency get rid of non-strategic assets and shutter non-active enterprises. – July 25, 2023.