The Malaysian Insight

THE head of Felda’s welfare foundation, Dr Emel Faizal Mohd Mokhtar, who is one of dozens of staff who will be laid off by year end, said he is confident that all those affected will be fairly compensated.

Dr Emel Faizal, who was appointed chief executive officer of Yayasan Felda in 2011, said he was unaware of the details of the layoff, but would accept any decision by Felda on its restructuring plan.

“I’m all right. This is the decision and the right of Felda,” he told The Malaysian Insight.

“Felda will not act unfairly towards its workers. Felda is caring. I will follow and respect the decision of Felda’s management.”

Felda chairman Shahrir Samad had told the Straits Times that the foundation would not be shut down, but restructured.

“We are not shutting down Yayasan Felda, but we need to conduct a restructuring,” Shahrir reportedly said.

He also revealed that the current salary of the CEO of Yayasan Felda, which is a non-profit organisation, was RM54,000 a month.

Dr Emel Faizal, however, declined to comment on his salary, and said he was unaware what his severance package would be.

“We will follow whatever decision is made. For me, it’s no big deal. On the salary, it’s up to them.

“I don’t know what my severance package is because I’m involved (in the layoff). So, I’m not involved in the discussions.”

A total of 68 staff will be laid off from the foundation, which receives an annual allocation of RM10 million to manage the Felda college, as well as a dialysis and welfare centre for settlers and their families.

The move by Felda follows the company’s growing debts as it faces allegations of mismanagement of funds and corruption.

Its listed arm, Felda Global Ventures (FGV), has also been underperforming at the stock exchange.

Former FGV chairman Isa Samad quit in June after becoming embroiled in a scandal involving the purchase of several properties at inflated prices. – December 1, 2017.