Naroden - Simunjan’s oil palm king

For most of our elected representatives be they MPs or DUN members, they do not want to antagonize the Chief Minister, Abdul Taib Mahmud because they know the consequences. In fact almost all of them heaping praises on him hoping that their voices can be heard. Once he notices you and becomes his confidant, you are on the way to a millionaire’s club.

Look at the State Assemblyman for Simunjan, YB Haji Mohd Naroden bin Haji Majais, who comes from an average family in Gedong. Since he became YB in the 1991 State election, he not only becomes a confidant of the Chief Minister and is now an assistant minister in the Chief Minister’s department, but also he is locally known as the “king of oil palm” in Simunjan owning among the largest areas of oil palm.

According to the Land and Survey Department’s Laporan Statistic Suku Ketiga Tahun 2005 (Statistic Report for Third quarter 2005) his companies have now owned seven areas in Simunjan consisting of 16,486 hectares (roughly 41,215 acres) of land for the planting of oil palm.

The breakdown is as follows:-

• Tanjong Midin, Batang Kerang, Simunjan/Serian, Lot 2984 Melikin land district of 4555 hectares approved in 1996 under the Pelita Nirwana Muhibbah Sdn Bhd;
• Batang Kerang, Simunjan/Serian, Lot 2981 Melikin land district with 3770 hectares approved in 1988 under the Gedong Plantation Sdn Bhd;
• Batang Kerang, Simunjan/Serian, Lot 2980 Melikin land district with 3480 hectares approved in 1988 under the Gedong Plantation Sdn Bhd;
• Between Batang Sadong and Sungai Simunjan, Lot 1226 Sedilu Gedong land district with 2182 hectares approved in 2004 under the Hydroflow Sdn Bhd;
• Between Lubuk Teba and Sungai Sentok, Gedong, Lot 1227 Sedilu Gedong land district with 593 hectares approved in 2004 under the Hydroflow Sdn Bhd;
• Tanjung Embang, Simunjan, Lot 1228 Sedilu Gedong land district with 189 hectares approved in 2003 under the Indranika Jaya Sdn Bhd;
• Between Tanjung Sap and Sunhgai Benat B, Simunjan, Lot 1229 with 1717 hectares approved in 2003 under Indranika Sdn Bhd.

This list is only up to the third quarter of 2005, but what about from thereon to this day? Imagine the amount of money his companies have earned all this while when CPO (Crude Palm Oil) was RM3,000 in March this year from the matured oil palms.

We do not envy him, or jealous of him (incase Alfred Jabu says so,) and how can we envy him when we, as voters, also contribute to his wealth. But what we – Malay and Iban voters – ask of him is that he should leave our NCR land alone. - The Broken Shield

Source: www.thebrokenshield.blogspot.com

Divine intervention on NCR Land development?

Prices of palm oil which is one of the principal exports from Malaysia have dropped sharply from RM4,330 a tonne to RM1,460 a tonne. Crude palm oil (CPO) futures prices on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Berhad were down for the third straight day amid growing pessimism over the global economic outlook this week.

Reports say that global financial problems and uncertainties over the economic climate was dampening demand and keeping buyers away. Many importers had opted to default on their contracts as the prices of CPO had dropped sharply and banks importing countries are more cautious in extending credit facilities.

Hence some importers of the commodity faced difficulties obtaining credit line from their banks, thus they cannot open LCs.

“If the prices continue to drop below RM1,300 a tonne, many planters will suffer heavy losses and may ‘ngiling their tikai’ (roll their mats),” says an economist.

In Sarawak, some two million hectares of lands have been approved for oil palm plantations, the bulks of these lands are Native Customary Rights (NCR) land which has been seized from the natives.

While the State government and big oil palm estate planters are having sleepless nights over the down trend of prices of CPO, the native land owners are jumping with joy and even consider it as “divine intervention”.

“God knows how to stop these big companies from further taking away our NCR land and destroying flora and fauna. It is one way God stops them from destroying His creations,” said an NCR land owner, hoping that many of them would abandon their estates.

Since the amendments to the Land Code in May 2000, the owners of the NCR land have been having not only nightmares, but have also been criminalized for owning the land; many have been jailed in defending their ancestral lands and many have taken the government to courts.

But taking the government to courts is very expensive affair. First, the landowners have to deposit RM10,000 to the court. Second, they have to come up with the legal fees (fortunately a few of the lawyers do not ask for legal fees.) Third, the burden of proof is on the landowners. The only ones who can help the landowners with the proof are the headmen, and community leaders, but here again the government has already warned them not to be witnesses.

Using private surveyors to survey their land with the aim of providing the proof is not allowed after the government passed amendments to the Land Surveyors Ordinance in 2001 which essentially remove the ability of natives to prove the extent of land on which they exercise NCR via increasingly popular communal effort – the community mapping.

It is obvious that the land owners have to pass so many hurdles, legal or otherwise, to prove that their lands belong to them. And as they are helpless, God has mercy on them and hears their prayers. Praise is to the Lord my God. Amen.