Felda chairman say agency free of debt, but quiet on his 'gaji'

Malaysia Chronicle

Under fire for his huge ‘gaji’, Felda chairman Mohd Yusuf Noor again refuted allegations his embattled organization was badly managed, pointing out that it had already paid off all its debts.

Mohd Yusuf Noor

But he refused to reveal his pay check despite criticism that it amounted to as much as RM2 million per year, more than most settlers would ever make in their lifetime.

"There is no way to say Felda is bankrupt for it has proved to the World bank and other financial institutions including Saudi Arabia and Kuwait financial houses of its capability in paying up the loans ahead of times. The financial standings have shown it has no more outstanding amount to date." Yusuf told reporters on Tuesday night.

Steep plunge in cash reserves alarm settlers

Sivarasa Rasiah

Felda was formed in 1956 to oversee development of rural land for rubber and oil palm planting and to improve the economic status of the landless rural Malay community. It is controlled by the Umno-led government and currently manages about 480 settlements around the country with 112,635 settlers.

Of late, public confidence in the agency has suffered after it reported a 67 percent plunge in cash reserves from RM4.08 billion in 2004 to RM1.35 billion in 2009. Land settlers were not appeased by its explanation on how it spent the cash.

A growing number of them are also beginning to launch legal claims against the agency for having underpaid them in their agricultural deals. Earlier this month, some 766 settlers from Negri Sembilan sued Felda for RM200 million for allegedly cheating them in the pricing for palm oit extracts.

In the course of investigating the claims, researchers stumbled on information about Yusuf's 'gaji' or remuneration and duly publicized it. The Felda chairman has not issued any denial so far, but pointed out that other senior staff including the Felda CEO received even more.

“He does not have to make comparisons with the other staff. For now, we are only asking him - what is his total package? Does it come up to as much as RM2 million – just give a yes or no. That’s all,” PKR vice president Sivarasa Rasiah told Malaysia Chronicle.

“You see, Felda is a public agency and it should behave like the public-listed firms where the best practices and corporate governance should prevail. It is standard procedure for the chairman and board of directors to state their income. It is not a private matter but open to public so that people can judge if there is any wrongdoing or if the amount is unjustified.”