Felda settlers should be given shares free of charge and not be forced to take loans to buy the shares when Felda Global Ventures Holding (FGVH) is listed, PKR says.

NONE "We stress that the best way to give due recognition to the pain, toil and perseverance of Felda settlers ... in a sustainable manner is by granting (them) shares," PKR vice-president Nurul Izzah Anwar said.

Rebutting Felda chairperson Isa Abdul Samad’s claim that the settlers would not be compelled to apply for loans to buy the shares, she said: "Granting them shares is windfall revenue in the real sense, free from shackles of debt."

She was speaking to reporters at the Parliament lobby today.

Nurul Izzah last week accused the Felda of coercing settlers to take up loans from "selected commercial banks" to buy shares in FVGH, which plans to be publicly listed by next month, even though some may have enough savings to purchase the Initial Public Offering (IPO) stock.

palm oil palm kelapa sawit 201107 “The ‘daily rest’ interest that is calculated day-to-day on outstanding loans is fixed at five percent. Although the loan margin is 100 percent, the loan period is only for six months.

“This means they would have to repay the entire loan using their own savings when they receive their pink or blue forms, or use the proceeds from selling FGVH shares in the open market later to repay the loan before or when the six-month period is up," she had said.

'Forced loan will fund institutions in involved listing'

The "windfall" promised to bait the settlers though the "forced loan" scheme, Nurul Izzah said, is the way for Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak to create "new opportunities" to fund the institutions involved in the listing.

She also revealed that from the timeline prepared, representatives of the banks selected would, from today, be conducting briefings on the details of the share-margin financing.

For a period of eight or nine days from April 23 or 24, she said, the banks would begin road shows to explain to the settlers at the 317 plantations on the loan offered and ask them to sign the loan forms.

isa samad interview 150509 The loan applications would be processed between May 7 and 22, after which Felda and the applicants would be informed whether their loans have been approved, Nurul Izzah added.

Isa last Saturday denied that the settlers would be forced to take up bank loans.

He said the windfall promised the settlers will be sourced from Felda's funds and not from the government.

"If commercial banks are involved, it will only be because they can provide a service to make this possible for stakeholders who require financial assistance to subscribe to the shares but, of course, those who wish to may purchase the shares using their own funds," Isa had said.

Reiterating that PKR has never opposed any Felda plan to offer incentives to settlers, Nurul Izzah said free shares in FGVH would be the best way to reward the settlers.