A fresh injunction filed by a PAS linked NGO fighting for the rights of the Federal Land Development Authority (Felda) settlers hit a snag today as the judge presiding at the Seremban High Court was too busy to hear their case.

“We met with the court registrar who suggested that we file the case in the Kuantan High Court. This is because the schedule of the presiding judge at the Seremban High Court is already full for the week.
                
NONE“As this is an urgent matter and we believe that the banks involved may take action, we were advised to file the injunction at the Kuantan High Court if we want it to be heard this week,” Anak chief Mazlan Aliman (right) told Malaysiakini today.

The injunction handled by Anak lawyer Haris Abdullah, Mazlan explained, was to stop Felda Global Ventures (FGV) and its bankers from going ahead with its planned listing until the serious allegations of fraud by settlers are investigated.

“This is the first phase involving 25 settlers and two commercial banks. Altogether we are moving to file injunctions on behalf of more settlers involving seven commercial banks.”

The settlers’ grouse, Mazlan detailed, are over the IPO offer loan forms issued by Felda and the “hurried manner” by which the agency brusquely asked the settlers to sign them.

He repeated Anak’s earlier allegations that the forms were indeed loan forms which will make the settlers liable for the so called durian runtuh (windfall) amount which the government and Felda say they will receive from the listing exercise.

“It is not durian runtuh but a loan,” stressed Mazlan.

Forms in English, which many cannot understand

Some settlers, he said, have complained that the forms were in English and not understood by many of them.

Indeed, the descriptions given by Felda personnel were that of a windfall, and not a loan that they would have to pay back later.

Mazlan claimed the settlers were unhappy with the so-called windfall being a loan in reality and the way in which this was misrepresented to them by Felda.

“They were also not given enough time to seek advice on what the forms meant, having been asked to signed them immediately.”

This is the second injunction filed by Anak against the listing of the agency’s subsidiary, which it claimed will not benefit Felda settlers and staff who are members of Koperasi Permodalan Felda (KPF), a major shareholder of FGV.

Anak claims that the listing will take away assets from KPF and cause settlers to lose control of FGV.

Their previous injunction, filed at the Kuantan High Court was successful, but was later overturned by the appellate court.

The government, however, has hailed the pending listing as a major milestone for Felda and the settlers, vowing to go ahead despite the hurdles.

The windfall from the listing was made much of by Prime Minister Najib Adbul Razak and Felda as a boon to settlers.

The PM is set to announce the quantum of the durian runtuh in a meet-the-settlers session scheduled to be held at the Jengka 8 Felda settlement in his home state of Pahang tomorrow.