Government instituted bureaucracy unnecessary and akin to Cartel-like leeches

MM Online:

Company refutes Pahang’s Musang King farmers’ ‘modern slavery’ accusations, says scheme protects Malaysia’s durian industry

General view of Royal Pahang Durian Group logo August 21, 2020. A spokesman from the group explained the legalisation scheme would ultimately lead to a win-win situation between the growers, state and industry
  
Picture by Firdaus Latif

PETALING JAYA, Aug 22 — After being accused of initiating an exploitative agreement with Musang King durian farmers to legitimise those on state-owned encroached land, the Royal Pahang Durian Group (RPDG), in denying these claims, has pointed out its bigger goal of thwarting the growing influence of foreign-backed players in the local market.

[kt notes: any evidence of foreign-backed players?]

A spokesman from RPDG, in an exclusive interview with Malay Mail yesterday, explained the legalisation scheme — that was compared to “modern slavery” by a group of farmers called the Save Musang King Alliance (Samka) — would ultimately lead to a win-win situation between the growers, state and industry.

The spokesman, who commented on condition of anonymity, in attempting to debunk Samka’s list of accusations, first pointed out how there are reportedly around 11,000 acres of state-owned land in Pahang currently encroached on by these purportedly illegal durian farmers.

RPDG’s representative said these growers practised the ‘grow-first-then-register’ culture instead of following the proper procedures, rebutting Samka’s claims that farmers accused of operating illegally were victims of rejected land plot applications.

“They will start growing the durian trees first, and only when the authorities start going after them, then they start scrambling to register their plots, and they are on state land and forestry land,” said the spokesman, referring to land gazetted as forest reserves.

“When the authorities go in to inspect, the durian trees are fully grown, so you can just imagine how long and for how many years they have been growing.”


[kt notes: Regarding the alleged ‘grow-first-then-register’ culture, the eff-ing TRUTH has been the denial of such land for non-Malay use, as in the case of Perak

- a lil' aside, if we recall, Azumu appropriated (re-possessed) land illegally farmed with fruit trees, veg etc - just guess how long a nangka tree has to be grown, cared for, its surrounding kept clear, etc etc etc before the tree bears fruits? Answer 6 years

- the land that Azumu seized so that he could gift them to his state soccer players were cultivated-developed for over 40 years. Instead of making those land legal for the struggling farmers who toiled for nearly half a century, who enriched Perak with bountiful fruits, veg, etc, he took them away from the farmers to give to his soccer players. Why couldn't Azumu gift his soccer players with other state land? Why seized the ones worked on and nicely cultivated for over 40 years? I wouldn't be surprised if those soccer players (new landowners) would now lease their Azumu-gifted land back to the original farmers

Same problem in Pahang. Chinese farmers could never get state land for cultivation. But Chinese farmers being Chinese, they live in eternal hope that one day the State may appreciate their work developing jungle land (no doubt illegally) into bountiful durian plantations

- of course if the land was not so desirable they would be left to their perpetual struggles - but now the land is resources-rich with lucrative Musang King, after at least a decade of bloody hard work to enable the durian trees to bear fruits, "some" peoples' eyes turned green (or "red' as the Chinese would describe).

Worse, their hard work are insulted with “They will start growing the durian trees first, and only when the authorities start going after them, then they start scrambling to register their plots"

WTF, as mentioned, it takes about 10 years for a durian tree to bear fruits - so why didn't the authorities check or stop them during those 10 years?

It's only now when durians make very profitable lucrative revenue, especially with a rich and eager China, that "some" people (with green eyes) want to step in, get a cut and an eff-ing big cut at that too.

Those Chinese farmers did NOT steal the (state) land from any private individual but (no doubt without permission) undeveloped jungle land to grow durian trees as fruit farmers for a living, yes, admittedly on state land which would be denied to them no matter how long they apply for those land.

To raise those durian trees into productive fruit-bearing state, it would have taken them a decade or even more of hard work. The heaven didn't drop those fruit-bearing trees onto their laps.

Please also read this TMI article about Cameron Highland farmers, most of whom are Chinese: 
A farmer’s voice: Pahang govt should stop robbing farmers during pandemic - an extract read: However, the governments in Malaysia, at the federal and state levels, performed meagrely in developing our agricultural sector over decades.

For instance, even when our economy is shrinking due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the governments had not provided assistance to farmers in Cameron Highlands to face the hardship.

Instead, the Pahang government introduced the new Cameron Highlands’ agricultural land lease scheme to maximise its revenue, yet farmers’ rights will be completely sidelined as a result.

RPDG is a group of companies linked to Pahang royalty, and one half of a joint venture with state entity Perbadanan Kemajuan Pertanian Negeri Pahang (PKPP), forming RPD Produce-PKPP, or RPDP-PKPP Sdn Bhd.

The RPDP-PKPP venture was formalised in March with the objective of operating the country’s largest durian-processing centre at a cost of RM40 million, which is slated for completion by June 2021.

Then, in June, the Pahang state government awarded RPDP-PKPP the lease and rights to 5,357 acres of land in Raub for 30 plus 30 years, of which up to 30 per cent RPDG alleges have been encroached.

Following the award, RPDP-PKPP then offered the farmers on the encroached land a means of legitimising their plots through the legalisation scheme, as the rightful lease holders of these plots.

Those on illegally occupied land operating without permits, under the agreement, would be signed on as RPDP-PKPP’s subcontracted farmers; hence “legalising” their land.

The RPDG spokesman during the interview stressed that if encroachment activities are not weeded out, the Musang King market, and possibly entire local durian market along with it, could soon be at the mercy of foreign players who would determine the price of the King of Fruits without checks and balances.

[kt notes: any bloody proof of foreign-backed players?]

Musang King durian farmers alleged they are being pressed into signing an exploitative contract that would require them to pay ‘rent’ of RM6,000 per acre for this year

Picture courtesy of Save Musang King Alliance (Samka)

“Instead of a foreign syndicate or investor being the one deciding the market, wouldn’t it be better for a Malaysian company to determine the price of Malaysian durians?” said the spokesman.

[kt notes: there's no necessity for a cartel to interfere with market forces - and any bloody proof of foreign-backed players?]

[kt notes: This arrangement really disgusts me - instead of facilitating legal ownership of the land to honest hardworking farmers (Malaysians but alas for these Malaysians, they are Chinese) who toil the jungle land for decades to turn them into profitable durian estates (which actually benefits Pahang) they institute unnecessary 'bureaucracy' into the system, with "some" people benefiting from the farmers' hard work a la leeches]

[Have you heard of the attempted Mandarin cartel many years ago when "someone" thought it'd be a good idea to control ALL mandarin imports prior to the Chinese New Year season? I have already written of that but in a future post I'll re-narrate the story to you]