Terminate Isa’s appointment in SPAD, Felda NGO tells Najib

Anak says individuals implicated in issues that raise questions about their integrity should not serve in government.

PETALING JAYA: The Persatuan Anak Peneroka Felda Kebangsaan (Anak) has called on Prime Minister Najib Razak to end the services of Isa Samad as acting chairman of the Land Public Transport Commission (SPAD).

Mazlan Aliman, who is president of the NGO which represents the second and third generations of Felda settlers, said the tenure of the former Felda Global Ventures (FGV) chairman should be terminated since he was arrested by the Malaysian-Anti Corruption Commission (MACC) today.

He said individuals implicated in issues that raised questions about their integrity should not serve in government.

Isa was arrested by the MACC in connection with the purchase of two hotels in 2014 and 2015 by a Felda subsidiary called Felda Investment Corporation (FIC).

He had quit his role as FGV chairman in June after meeting with Najib and before his appointment as acting chairman of SPAD.

Mazlan said although he welcomed Isa’s arrest, he felt “very sad” that it had come so late in the day.

“Various quarters had demanded for action to be taken against leaders involved in managing Felda because the damage done was severe,” he claimed.

“We must admit that apart from the 1MDB issue, the scandal at Felda or FGV are among the worst,” he told FMT.

Saying Felda’s “critical” financial state had affected the lives of the settlers, he reiterated his call for a royal commission of inquiry to be set up to get to the bottom of the issue.

“In addition to leaders being caught, it is important for the government’s policy on Felda to also be looked at,” he said.

He added that a recovery plan for Felda should also include suggestions on how to improve the livelihood of the settlers.

“Through the royal commission of inquiry, important issues dealing with integrity and corruption in Felda can be dealt with,” he said, adding that there was no assurance that problems in the organisation would come to an end under someone else’s leadership. - FMT