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11 April 2019
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https://twitter.com/gst183/status/1116107783839997953
KUALA LUMPUR: In a rare moment, Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad interjected a former deputy minister who was speaking on the Felda White Paper, tabled in the lower house today.
Ahmad Maslan (BN-Pontian) was defending the previous administration’s track record in running the land development agency, telling the floor how Felda consistently generated profits from 2012 to 2017.
Ahmad said Felda Global Ventures Holdings (FGV), the agency’s commercial arm, had raked in profits of between RM400 million and RM1.5 billion during Barisan Nasional’s administration.
However, he said FGV suffered losses of RM1.04 billion after Pakatan Harapan took over the government.
He offered suggestions on how to revive the agency but as he spoke, Mahathir (PH-Langkawi) stood up to interject.
Ahmad immediately gave way, calling it a “historic day”.
Mahathir proceeded to speak, expressing awe over the “fairy tales” spewed out by Ahmad, and questioned why the proposals were not raised with Najib previously.
“Why did he not tell his ‘Bossku’ back then so that today, we would not have problems, and there would be no need for a White Paper? It would all be clean.
“But these crooks have left such a mess that we need to clean up. You say FGV generated billions in revenue. Show me where the money is,” he said.
Ahmad continued to defend the profits, saying they were real, and Mahathir could check it.
https://www.msn.com/en-my/news/national/show-me-the-billions-felda-made-says-dr-m/ar-BBVMYiN?ocid=st
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[Infografik] Masalah kewangan Felda
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https://twitter.com/jezlai/status/1116058353174630400
CIMB chairperson Nazir Abdul Razak says Felda, set up by his father Abdul Razak Hussein when he was prime minister, should justify its planned purchase of a 37 percent stake in PT Eagle High Plantations Tbk.
Felda announced the planned acquisition in the plantation unit of Indonesian conglomerate Rajawali Group after a failed attempt by Felda Global Ventures (FGV) to purchase the same stake.
FGV, a company listed on Bursa Malaysia, was criticised by shareholders when it proposed to purchase a 37 percent stake in PT Eagle High Plantations Tbk for US$680 million.
Among the critics was Employees Provident Fund (EPF), which had since offloaded all of its shares in FGV.
Felda, unlike FGV, is not a public-listed company and is owned by the government. Felda owns a 21 percent stake in FGV.
Nazir in an Instagram posting noted that Felda was still paying a premium despite the offer of US$505 million for the 37 percent stake (580 rupiah per share) US$175 million less than FGV’s offer.
“Eagle High’s average price in November was 212 rupiah per share, so it’s a 173 percent premium for a non-controlling stake.
“I hope the board will fully justify the acquisition and valuation even though the deal is no longer made by listed FGV,” he said.
Nazir also shared an photograph of his father delivering a speech to Felda settlers in Kuala Terengganu on March 28, 1966.
https://m.malaysiakini.com/news/367161
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9 April 2019
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PETALING JAYA: Felda lodged a police report yesterday claiming it was cheated by Najib Razak into investing US$505 million (RM2.3 billion) in an Indonesian plantation firm owned by a friend of the former prime minister.
In the report lodged at the Dang Wangi police headquarters yesterday, Felda director-general Othman Omar said the amount paid to acquire a 37% stake in Eagle High Plantations TBK (EHP) was 344% more than its actual value of US$114 million.
EHP is part of the Rajawali Group owned by Peter Sondakh, whom Othman said was close to Najib.
He said Felda took a RM4.8 billion loan to finance the deal from GovCo Holdings Bhd (GovCo), a subsidiary of the finance ministry then headed by Najib.
“Following the purchase by Felda at RM2.3 billion, it suffered losses when the value as of last month was just RM555 million,” Othman said.
He said Najib had in 2015 directed Felda through its special purpose vehicle FIC Properties Sdn Bhd to invest in EHP, after earlier approaching Felda’s FGV Bhd as well as the Malaysian Plantation Oil Board (MPOB) and Malaysian Rubber Board (MRB).
Othman said the deal, signed by then-Felda chairman Isa Samad, was “one-sided” and “risky”, adding that EHP had debts of US$547.4 million in 2014 and liabilities of US$676.9 million in 2016.
He said the company also had no sustainable palm-oil accreditation, and would never be able to get the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) certification in the next 10 years.
It also said the deal went against findings by auditors BDO Malaysia and KPMG Malaysia, due diligence undertaken by Indonesian law firm Hiswara Bunjamin Tandjung and a presentation by JP Morgan.
Felda defended the deal two years ago, saying it needed “a strong local partner to materialise its business plan to expand in Indonesia”.
“As Rajawali Group is among the largest conglomerates in Indonesia, it is a much sought-after partner not only in the plantation sector but also other related businesses,” it had said.
It was reported earlier this year that Felda was seeking to dispose of its stakes in EHP.
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PETALING JAYA: Najib Razak today defended Felda’s investment in Indonesia’s Eagle High Plantations TBK (EHP), urging the Pakatan Harapan-led government to make public the agreement signed between the two companies.
This comes after Felda lodged a police report yesterday claiming it was cheated by Najib into investing US$505 million (RM2.3 billion) in EHP, owned by Peter Sondakh who is said to be a close friend of the former prime minister.
In a Facebook post, Najib said he had called on the government in early February to reveal that a “put option” was part of the agreement, yet Putrajaya remained silent.
Najib said the “put option” would allow Felda to sell back its 37% to EHP at the original purchase price plus the 6% annual interest charge borne by EHP.
“In other words, if we did not want to continue with the investment, we could claim all the money we paid plus 6% annual interest.
“The money we used to pay for the investment was borrowed through bonds with an interest rate of 3.85%,” he said.
Najib said this meant that if EHP succeeded and the price of palm oil recovered, the investment would bring in huge profits.
“On the other hand, the government would still profit if it sold back the shares because the interest we subjected EHP to was higher than the cost of our loan.”
At the end of the day, he said, public funds would still be ensured, and the government would not suffer any loss.
He said this disproved the claim that Felda would suffer losses by buying into EHP.
He said PH should stop lying to the public by playing up propaganda to attack him, and urged the government to reveal the agreement between Felda and EHP.
“Just admit that the main reason Felda is suffering losses now is because the price of palm oil fell below production costs after GE14.”
In the police report lodged yesterday, Felda director-general Othman Omar said the amount paid to acquire a 37% stake in EHP was 344% more than its actual value of US$114 million.
EHP is part of the Rajawali Group owned by Sondakh.
Othman said Felda took a RM4.8 billion loan to finance the deal from GovCo Holdings Bhd (GovCo), a subsidiary of the finance ministry then headed by Najib.
“Following the purchase by Felda at RM2.3 billion, it suffered losses when the value as of last month was just RM555 million,” Othman said.
He said Najib had in 2015 directed Felda through its special purpose vehicle FIC Properties Sdn Bhd to invest in EHP, after earlier approaching Felda’s FGV Bhd as well as the Malaysian Plantation Oil Board (MPOB) and Malaysian Rubber Board (MRB).
Othman said the deal, signed by then-Felda chairman Isa Samad, was “one-sided” and “risky”, adding that EHP had debts of US$547.4 million in 2014 and liabilities of US$676.9 million in 2016.
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weehingthong 