No Royal Commission of Inquiry on FGV, Felda losses

Deputy minister Razali Ibrahim says there is no need for a probe at the moment as necessary action has already been taken.

DEWAN RAKYAT

KUALA LUMPUR: The government has no plans yet to set up a royal commission of inquiry (RCI) on the scandals surrounding Felda Global Ventures Holdings Bhd (FGV) and Felda.

Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Razali Ibrahim said there was no need for one at the moment.

“All the necessary action has already been taken to address the issues arising,” he said in his reply to Lim Kit Siang (DAP-Gelang Patah).

Lim had asked when an RCI would be set up to thoroughly investigate the billions of ringgit in losses at FGV and Felda, as well as to identify those responsible for the losses, in the interests of the 100,000 Felda settlers.

Felda and FGV have been mired in mismanagement issues and alleged improprieties, which prompted government intervention and investigations by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).

On June 6, Zakaria Arshad and three other FGV senior executives were asked to take an indefinite leave of absence, which FGV non-executive chairman Mohd Isa Abdul Samad said was a decision made by the entire board.

The other three senior executives were FGV chief financial officer Ahmad Tifli Mohd Talha, FGV trading chief executive officer Ahmad Salman Omar and Delima Oil Products senior general manager Kamarzaman Abd Karim.

The board’s decision came a day after Zakaria was told to resign by Isa following a series of board meetings since May 31 concerning delayed payments owed to Delima Oil by Safitex, an Afghan company headquartered in Dubai.

Following his suspension, Zakaria urged the MACC to investigate allegations of impropriety in FGV and asked the commission to probe the parties involved. - FMT