Anwar: Did Felda lose RM500mil in North America?

PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim also wonders whether the alleged loss was part of the RM6 billion borrowed from the EPF.
This was one among many questions about the Federal Land Development Authority (Felda) that served to trigger the hullabaloo in the Dewan Rakyat today.

While the din triggered by just-returned opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim's questions and the jeers and counter-allegations of BN parliamentarians meant that hope for answers were as good as gone, the former deputy premier's statement released to the press has at least ensured the issue remain a poser for PM Najib Abdul Razak.

A land rights group linked to PAS had earlier alleged it had evidence to show that Felda borrowed RM6 billion from the Employees Provident Fund (EPF).

Najib, who has placed Felda under his own portfolio, must come clean on whether its subsidiary, Felda Global Ventures, had lost as much as RM500 million of the RM1.175 billion that it had invested overseas, Anwar said in the statement.

Anwar (holding bouquet) said PKR believes the RM6 billion, coupled with a RM3 billion injection from Felda into its subsidiary Felda Global Ventures, was where Felda Global derived the funds to invest overseas.

PKR also believes, the party's de facto leader added, “that all the overseas investments made by Felda Global with the loan from EPF, into Felda Iffco Sdn Bhd, Twin Rivers Technologies US, TRT-ETGO Canada, Felda Global Ventures Middle East as well as Felda Global Ventures Arabia, all losses from such ventures racheted up between 2007 to 2010 totalled almost RM500 million.”

According to Anwar, Felda Global invested RM175 million to acquire Twin Rivers Technologies in the US, which he said was “the worst investment made in Malaysian corporate history”.

Another RM300 million was borrowed from CIMB to pay Bank of America, also over Twin Rivers Technologies US, while Felda Global may have possibly used up to RM700 million for a multi-seed crushing facility called TRT ETGO in Canada.

TRT ETGO is a subsidiary of Twin Rivers Technologies.

“Therefore, we believe the total amount invested in Twin Rivers Technologies US, including in its subsidiaries, is around RM1.175 billion. Despite the huge investments, we believe that Twin Rivers Technologies US has suffered losses from 2007 to 2010 of almost RM500 million,” said Anwar.

'Losses were concealed by palm oil profits'

Returning to Najib, Anwar took a jibe at the prime minister's proud announcement of Felda Global's performance.

“We believe the prime minister does not know how bad are the losses suffered by Felda Global Ventures in its overseas investments, becauses the losses were concealed by Felda Global's huge profits in its palm oil business,” said Anwar, who is Permatang Pauh MP.

Anwar called for an investigation to be launched into Felda's loan from EPF and the land authority's loss-making overseas investments, and for the findings to be made known to the public.

Since Felda has been one of Najib's portfolios since 1997, the opposition leader added, the prime minister cannot claim ignorance since investment-related decisions need his approval, according to the Felda Act.

Given the questions of judgment raised by the possible losses suffered, Anwar also queried the role of Felda's advising consultants in the matter.

“The rakyat demands answers to all the questions raised above, as Felda has borrowed RM6 billion from the rakyat.”