In an exclusive interview with Malaysiakini, Co-operatives Commission chief Mangsor Saad reveals more about the financial entity and the issues surrounding it.

Malaysiakini: A report in Kosmo stated that the commission has RM49 billion in hand. Is it possible for the commission to accumulate that much wealth since it was only formed last year?

Mangsor: RM49 billion, as stated in Kosmo , is the round up total for bank and credit only. The overall assets belonging to the co-operatives are RM55.7 billion. These assets, belonging to the co-operatives, are cumulative assets from 1922 until now, not only in cash but in assets like land, buildings, cars, equipment.

This is a wrong statement, wrongly quoted. We have not done the current valuation on the Co-operative Development Department. We are in the midst of transferring the assets from the department to the commission.

Let us make it clear. The Co-operative Commission is a government department. Any asset of the government is not the property of the co-operative movement. Most of the assets are in the hands of the National Land Commissioner and they belong to the government. The commission is formed by the government, owned by the government.

What is the commission's source of income?

All are given by the government. It's government's property not co-operatives' property. Our operating expenditure amounts to RM77 million a year. We have offices all over the country in every state and district and a staff of about 1,300 members.

It is a social economic organisation meant to reach out to the rakyat, especially those in the inlands. The money belongs to the government. It is not that we earn the income. We earn very little from the services tendered to the co-operatives. For example, we could only collect RM800,000 a year in terms of registration fee collected. We are still very dependent on the government for funds.

Are the latest audited accounts ready?

Our accounts are currently being audited by the auditor-general and will be ready by August. Once it has gone through Parliament, we will release them to the public.

As mentioned in Section 5 of the Co-operative Commission Act, there is a vesting date for the transfer of assets and properties to the commission. What is the vesting date?

It is ' harta kerajaan ' (government property) and is of no consequence to the public. It is just transferring of assets from the Department of Co-operative Development to the commission which will take quite some time. No issue will arise unless there is abuse of power. I would like to emphasise that we are not using co-operatives money. It is the government's estate and money. We will list the assets in time to come.

When will the rules and regulations set by the commission be ready?

As the chairman, I have the right to determine the rules and guidelines governing co-operatives that will be circulated to members. Regulations have been signed and approved by the minister. It is now waiting to be gazzetted by the attorney-general. We are trying to get it done by end of this year. Currently there are about 11 regulations, which have not been finalised, pending approval of the attorney-general. We have improvised and fine-tuned it.

Will there not be conflict with the National Co-operative Policy 2004?

In implementation, we consolidate the policy into the vision and mission of the commission. It is very focused. I need a vision and mission to do my job. We need to be a driver of excellence to the co-operatives so that they become a significant contributor to the economy. When you go to war, you need a vision.

Any plans for the co-operative banking sector?

Currently, we only have one co-operative bank, Bank Rakyat. Once we have more funds, we need to be managed. We need to have more co-operative banks. By 2020, we want to have two more co-operative banks. By this year, hopefully one more co-operative bank will be set up.