NCR landowners receive investment payoff

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Cheng (third right) presents the payment to a landowner. Also seen from right are Rengan, Padan, Gelanggang, Vincent, Kim and Adibah.

SIMUNJAN: Fifty-one Native Customary Right (NCR) landowners here received the payment of Mature ASSAR Investment (Batch 8) worth RM80,093.80 from KTS Pelita (Simunjan) Sdn Bhd yesterday.

KTS Pelita (Simunjan) Sdn Bhd’s Land Development Committee senior member Desmond Cheng, member Datuk Vincent George Chapman, assistant administration officers of Land Development Ministry Kim Min Far and Adibah Syafiah, who represented permanent secretary to the ministry Datu Jaul Samion, and Land Custody and Development Authority (LCDA) Kuching project officer Padan Singa were among those present at a handing-over ceremony held at the estate office here.

In his speech, Vincent said the company, under the leadership of Cheng, would look into ways to enhance production to cushion the impact of the recent slump in crude palm oil (CPO) prices.

He added that KTS Pelita (Simunjan) hoped to dole out dividends to participating NCR landowners before the Gawai celebrations in June.

“Calculations are being fine tuned and we hope before Gawai, participating landowners will be given their dividends,” he said.

Vincent also called for close co-operation among landowners to enhance security in the plantation estate so as to watch out for any theft of fresh fruit bunch (FFB).

He cautioned that they might lose dividends worth hundreds of ringgit to theft if they failed to protect the estate.

Met by reporters, Padan said that 300 landowners participating in the project here would hopefully get dividends and incentives by May.

He explained that the dividends were distributed based on the performance of the joint venture company while incentives had been fixed for RM300 per hectare per year.

“The better the performance, the higher the dividends we can deliver. This is because dividends depend on the company’s performance.”

Padan believed KTS Pelita (Simunjan) would achieve its target of 42,000 metric tonnes of FFB this year following its new mature area of about 1,200 hectares.

“With the new mature area, the total production area is now 2,755 hectares. Even though the CPO price keeps going down, we are hopeful that this new area will be able to boost productivity.”

As of March, the company has already registered 7,000 metric tonnes of FFB.

“It is on the right track to achieve the target,” quipped Padan. On CPO, he said the current price recorded a new low for the last six months.

“Although before the end of last year the CPO price went up, it has gone down in the last two months.”

Present were councillor of Simunjan District Council Gelanggang Sangga, KTS Pelita (Simunjan) Sdn Bhd’s Area Development Committee (ADC) chairman Rengan Chengu and Vincent’s personal secretary Natasha Tiong Nulie.