PRIME Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has provided evidence in the form of two partial documents proving that he had signed a debt waiver scheme for Felda settlers.
Media outlets were today provided with two documents, namely the agreement on Assignment for Financial Service Reserve Account (FSRA) between Felda, the Malaysian government and Amanahraya Trustees Berhad dated June 26, 2023, as well as a RM990 mil payment order as sukuk to Felda.
This is after Perikatan Nasional (PN) chairman Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin had demanded proof that this had occurred.
“I present a portion of the Assignment for Financial Service Reserve Account (FSRA) document related to the government’s guarantee to Felda that I have signed,” Anwar said in a brief statement.
“(With this proof) I demand that Muhyiddin apologise for the slander against me.”
Yesterday (July 19) former premier Muhyiddin demanded an open and unconditional written apology from Anwar following the latter’s claim that the initiative to restructure and forgive Felda’s debt under Muhyiddin’s administration was promised but never materialised.
The Pagoh MP had dismissed Anwar’s claims as a lie, citing a parliamentary reply from Law and Institutional Reform Minister Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said on Feb 23 that the waiver was carried out in 2021, though the present government is unable to continue what he started due to cash flow problems.
Despite Muhyiddin’s denial, Anwar doubled down on his claim the following day, saying that there was no allocation in the 2021 and 2022 federal budgets to waive the RM8.3 bil in debt.
This prompted Muhyiddin to issue a letter of demand demanding that Anwar, within 24 hours of receiving the letter, furnish signed documentations that the latter, as Finance Minister, had at the end of June signed a debt waiver scheme for the Felda settlers.
In response to this, Anwar told the media last night (July 19) after attending the Tanjong Karang Unity Maal Hijrah 1445H celebration that he will release proof that he had signed a debt waiver scheme for Felda settlers.
“I can show them, there is no need to wait 24 hours, I can do it in 12 hours. I did sign it on June 27. As to why he (Muhyiddin) did not do the work, I do not know,” he was reported as saying.
“You (Muhyiddin) challenge (me) like this… fair enough, I will furnish proof that I had signed (the debt waiver of RM990 mil), (and) he has to apologise.”
In a separate statement today (June 20), the Finance Ministry also confirmed that Anwar had signed the FSRA assignment agreement on June 26.
“This agreement involves the government’s guarantee of RM9.9 bil to (Felda) for its debt restructuring exercise, through the issuance of sukuk and revolving credit as an effort to recover Felda’s financial standing,” it said.
“Under this agreement, the government will fund the repayment of the sukuk with a grant allocation of RM990 mil per year for a duration of 10 years.”
The ministry went on to confirm that the first payment of the RM990 mil had been disbursed on July 18 in accordance with the allocations announced under the 2023 Budget.
Previously the prime minister had claimed that under the PN government’s 2021 and 2022 national budgets, there had been no allocations to resolve and dispose of Felda’s debts.
He said it was only in this year’s Madani budget that he had set aside RM990 mil as an early allocation to dispose of the Felda settlers’ debt. – July 20, 2023
