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Nafas constitution suspended, effective today

KUALA LUMPUR: The constitution of the National Farmers' Organisation (Nafas) has been suspended effective today.

The suspension order was issued by the Director-General of the Farmers' Organisation Authority, Amir Matamin, acting as the Registrar of farmers' organisations under Section 20(1) of the Farmers' Organisations Act 1973 (Act 109).

Amir said that disharmony in Nafas arose when the board of directors disregarded decisions made by the registrar and acted independently by issuing media statements before consulting the registrar.

He said that during the suspension period, the board of directors and management of Nafas will not have any authority as provided under the organisation's constitution.

"The registrar will appoint an administrator and several committees to oversee governance at Nafas and conduct investigations into management, governance and financial records.

"The suspension is effective from Nov 1 2024, until further notice of its revocation," he said during a press conference on Nafas governance reforms at Menara LPP here today.

Amir said Nafas was entitled to appeal to the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security within 30 days of the order.

"During the suspension period, Nafas will be managed and administered by appointed administrators who will oversee Nafas' affairs," he said.

Amir added that any statement detrimental to the Farmers' Organisation Authority during the suspension period would result in disciplinary action.

"During the suspension, the board of directors members are not dismissed. They are only temporarily suspended. During this time, they need to remain calm and hand over authority to the registrar to administer," he stated.

Responding to how long the Nafas constitution will be suspended, Amir said no specific timeframe had been set.

"It could be a month, two months, maybe three months. Perhaps a year. It depends on the current situation," he said.

Amir added that on Feb 7, Nafas was placed under a moratorium by the minister with the aim of improving its governance and administration.

"Observations by the Registrar's Office of Farmers' Organisation Authority indicate that efforts to enhance Nafas' governance and administration during the moratorium were not fully embraced by the Nafas board of directors," he said.

Commenting on whether the suspension provides room for investigation by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), Amir said all parties have their scopes.

"MACC has its scope, while we are looking at governance aspects under the rules and laws of the Farmers' Organisation Authority.

"It may be linked simultaneously, but in reality, we don't have significant issues concerning MACC," he said.

On Tuesday, MACC chief commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki confirmed that the agency is investigating a cartel involved in the distribution and supply of padi fertiliser contracts linked to a ministry, with a total value of RM1.8 billion.

It launched the investigation after conducting a series of raids over the past two days around Kuala Lumpur, including at the organisation's headquarters, the ministry, and nine companies awarded related projects.

According to sources, the project under the ministry was awarded to the organisation for a period of 30 months from 2021 to 2023.

The source explained that the organisation was responsible for producing padi fertiliser and distributing it to farmers nationwide through its state-level offices.

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