LETTER | Saya Anak Bangsa Malaysia (SABM) Australia calls on the BN-Umno government to immediately initiate a Royal Commission to get to the bottom of the Felda land scandal and bring the culprits to justice.

SABM Australia also calls on the Felda board to step down immediately due to their failure to protect the interests of Felda Settlers.

Felda is at risk of losing rights to four plots of land valued at around RM1 billion due to an ownership transfer through an allegedly "dubious transaction" in 2015.

The land scandal adds to the burden of thousands of Felda settlers who are weighed down by debt as a result of Felda mismanagement and corruption.

The land scandal has only recently become public although authorities have known about this issue for more than a year. Some reports even link the land scandal to improper intervention from the Prime Minister's Office.

Comparisons have been drawn to the 1MDB scandal where billions of public funds have been lost leading to a criminal probe by the US Department of Justice.

The failure of governance is similar to the Mara property purchases, where Mara deliberately overpaid for property in the Melbourne Central Business District in Australia with over-payments being allegedly channelled for personal use

SABM Australia is also concerned about the speed at which PAS has come to the defence of the BN-Umno government in rejecting the demand for an RCI to investigate this scandal. PAS has lost its moral compass in their haste to support of their Umno partners.

It is evident that PAS has abandoned its Malay-Muslim heartland of Felda settlers who are under considerable financial pressure due to Felda mismanagement for political expediency.

Does PAS consider itself to be part of the BN-Umno government or is it an opposition party committed to holding the BN-Umno government to account?

Can the Felda settlers rely on PAS to support them in their hour of need?

Felda settlers, no doubt, are coming to the conclusion that they cannot rely on the Umno government or PAS to protect their interests and this will no doubt affect their decisions to vote in GE14.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.