Settlers who take legal action against the Federal Land Development Agency will not receive Hari Raya cash aid, the agency said.

 

They will also not receive dividends from Felda Global Ventures Holdings Bhd's (FGV) trust fund for settlers.

A Felda spokesperson said this also applies to those who illegally sell their Felda-allocated land to third parties.

The decision was to "safeguard the interests of other settlers who contributed to Felda’s development", the spokesperson said.

"Felda's board of directors decided that those who sell their land or file legal action against Felda will not get anything (Hari Raya aid or dividends)," he told Malaysiakini when contacted today.

The spokesperson, who declined to be named, said the board of directors arrived at this decision this month.

However, he declined to reveal the number of settlers affected by the decision.

PAS journal Harakahdaily reported today that about 50 settlers from Felda Bera and Felda Rompin lodged police reports after being denied FGV dividends and Hari Raya aid amounting to about RM1,000 each.

The party organ said they are part of over 1,000 settlers nationwide  deprived of  their Hari Raya aid or dividends.

Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak ( left ) earlier announced that 112,635 Felda settlers will receive FGV dividends of RM647.78 per person, amounting to a total of RM72.9 million.

Felda was also allocated RM30.5 million for Hari Raya aid of RM300 per settler family.

Meanwhile, the spokesperson said settlers who breach any Felda regulation, including not conducting replanting or selling their produce to Felda, will only receive half of the dividends and Hari Raya aid promised.

Settlers from various Felda land schemes, mostly in Pahang, had filed suits against the agency over allegations of possible cheating over the price of palm oil sold to the land authority.

These include:

  • Settlers in Felda Mempaga 1, Felda Mempaga 2, Mempaga 3 and Bukit Damar, in Pahang who filed a suit in 2012 against the agency and Felda Palm Industries Sdn Bhd for allegedly "cheating" them of at least RM11.3 million;

 

  • Eight Felda plantations, also in Pahang, comprising Felda Chini and Felda Chini Timur in Pekan, filed a RM422 million suit against the land authority in 2012;

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  • Some 550 settlers in Bera, Pahang, filed a suit against Felda for cheating them over the palm oil produced in 2011;

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  • This is followed by 711 settlers in Jengka filing a similar suit against Felda for RM344 million;

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  • In 2010, 766 settlers from Rancangan Serting and Gugusan Raja Alias sued Felda for RM200 million; and

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  • In 2009, 400 settlers in Felda Maokil, Johor, filed a RM71.8 million suit against the land authority.

    • Terengganu Felda allocates RM6.7mil

    Meanwhile, Bernama reported that Terengganu Felda has allocated RM6.7 million in dividends and duit raya for 7,459 families of Felda settlers in the state this year.

    Its general manager, Mohd Helmi Fakhzan Abdul Wahab said the amount comprised RM2.12 million in duit raya and RM4.58 million in Felda Global Ventures Holdings (FGVH) Berhad's dividend.

    He said each family would receive RM647.78sen in FGVH divided and RM300 as duit raya, making the total of RM947.78sen.

    "The divided and duit raya are distributed to settlers who have been loyal to Felda all these years, but for private settlers who replant, harvest and their crops on their own, they received only half the amount of dividend and duit raya."

    He said this at the presentation of donation of RM20,179.80 collected from Terengganu Felda settlers for Gaza Relief Fund in Kuala Terengganu today.

    Mohd Helmi said of the 7,459 settlers, 80 per cent of them received the full amount, while only 20 per cent received half the amount of dividend and duit raya.

    He said the distribution of the duit raya in all 20 Felda settlers statewide, which began on July 16, had been completed yesterday, while the distribution of the dividend was ongoing.

    Risda distributes RM154mil aid 

    On another matter, Bernama reported Rubber Industry Smallholders Development Authority (Risda) has distributed RM154 million as Rubber Price Slump Special Aid.

    Of the total, RM130 million were distributed to 260,000 smallholders, while the remaining RM24 million were given to 48,000 rubber tappers registered under Risda.

    Rural and Regional Development Minister Mohd Shafie Apdal said the special aid was given with the aim of helping alleviate the burden of smallholders during the unstable condition  of global rubber prices.

    "We are giving the one-off aid of RM500 to smallholders and eligible rubber tappers as an immediate approach to alleviate their burden due to the drop in the current global rubber prices," he told reporters after presenting the special aid to 5,492 smallholders in Selangor today.

    He said in a bid to increase the income of these smallholders and rubber tappers, Risda also encouraged them to make optimum use of their own land by planting cash crops, such as chili, banana and pineapple.

    Besides, he said Risda also offered loans under its Smallholders Socio-economic Development Fund to facilitate farming activities through the Additional Economic Activity programme.