Press Statement: Something rotten in the Malaysian Co-operative sector

Plunder, blunder, mismanagement, and ignorance

The Malaysian co-operative sector which is the third economic sector has crossed over 100 years in existence.

A.) The Malaysian Co-operative Sector which consists of above 15,000 co-operatives with 15 million members has to be re-structured. This sector is in a precarious situation.  (This statistic does not include the few hundred co-operatives which are in liquidation such as the Co-operative Central Bank with 67,000 memberships.)

1.) Parliament has discussed upon this haphazardly without rhyme or reason.

2.) Hence the extract of the Hansard has been published in my link in google which breaches the confidentiality of parliament.

B.) RM Billions is missing from the sector. (rm1.2 billion granted to Bank Rakyat, Koperasi Moccis and other co-operatives have not been included in the statement of accounts which was entered into Parliament and this has been carried on from 2008 to the present day.)

C.) RM Billions has been plundered according to the whims and fancies of the Co-operative Commission of Malaysia which contravenes the Constitution. (Co-operative officials have forced co-operatives to transfer RM Billions to the illegal Co-operative Commission selectively which is against the constitution.)

D.) Ambiguous laws have been gazetted to forcefully transfer RM billions in the Statutory Reserve Fund to the illegal Co-operative Commission. (The minister has wrongfully gazetted forcing co-operatives to transfer from this fund. In terms of co-operative laws all fund transfers have to be qazetted within 5 years of the Co-operative Commission act. The gazette came into being in 2014 which has lapsed.) 

1.) Laws have been amended to provide immunity for wrong-doers.

2.) All societies registered by SKM and deemed illegal.

3.) The annual account for 2008 did not have an opening balance.

E.) The annual accounts passed through Parliament for the year ending 2008-2022 is incomplete and false.

F.) Few hundreds of co-operatives are languishing in liquidation with the Co-operatives Commission since 1982.

1.) The statement of affairs is not available.

2.) These co-operatives in liquidation are being managed by non-qualified liquidators without professional insurance and without being registered by the treasury.

G.) A few hundred thousand government servants have been trapped in syndicated loans. (The Co-operative Commission, the MACC, Bank Negara, and the Minister of Finance have failed to act on this matter in spite of them giving press statements to take action. These few hundred thousand government servants are in a dilemma as more than 60% of their salary have been deducted and some of them are facing bankruptcy.)

H.) ANGKASA the so-called apex organisation nullity all the way.

          1.) The directors were voted in by school children.

          2.) These school children are minors and cannot enter into contracts.

          3.) Angkasa's subsidiary has been mismanaged. The directors have been suspended.

          4.) Whilst all the directors were suspended, they still seem to carry on duties in Angkasa.

          5.) Another subsidiary has been raided by the MACC involving a solar project.

          6.) Angkasa has been implicated in a syndicated loan scam – eg: a member of a co-operative in Johor has ceased deduction channeled through the Sabah branch.

I.) The cooperative Central Bank (CCB) debacle.                               

Bank Negara is in contempt of hijacking Bank Buruh defying the court orders. Bank Buruh was illegally transferred to Bank Simpanan Nasional which is not a commercial bank. The Chairman of BSN was our present Deputy Prime Minister Zahid Hamidi.

Bank Negara had overstepped its powers and presented incomplete statement of affairs to the courts.                                                                                   

Bank Negara had administered the Cooperative Central Bank Receivership to a scandal driven status and overstepped it's limits in interfering in this matter.          
         

Shares in CCB were reduced to Rm 1 at the direction if the than Co-perative Development Department without court approval. The principle of Capital Reduction can only be approved by the court.                                       

The irony of this action is that co-operative shares were subjected to this order whereas the shares held by CCB in Cooperatives were intact and untouched.

CCB's incomplete statement of affairs were presented to the court.

J. Co-operative Commission is illegal all the way.                                                 

3 entities – i. Co-operative Development Department, ii. Farmer's Authority and iii. Fisheries Authority were supposed to have been amalgamated to form the commission.                                                             However, the Co-operative Development Department has hijacked the commission. The Farmer's Authority and Fisheries Authority have been left out and are in the lurch operating illegally. Their laws have been repealed.                   

All these 3 entities are existing illegally since 2nd January, 2008. Illegal budget allocations have been made for the 3 entities contravening the decision of parliament.

K.)     RM 8 million allocated to the Indian Co-operative Movement hijacked by the 2 past presidents to form their own co-operative. The said co-operative was short circuited in the process or registration. This co-operative was registered by-passing the procedures for registration of a co-operative. This co-operative can be deemed illegal.

L.)      Koperasi Pembangunan Pendidikan Bhd. (KOPP) members are in the lurch that their funds contributed for the education of their children is in a delima. We understand that a number of tribunal orders to refund the money is in the process. Its also an irony that the members are requested to make payments to a trust company (Universal Trustees).

          Both parties – the co-operative and the trust company have not issued receipts for payments made. Likewise the annual individual statement of accounts have not been submitted to the members. The trustees have failed to submit the combined annual statement of accounts.                                        

We have been informed to settle the issue with a nominal payment of 16 cents for each ringgit contributed by the members which is against the principal of capital reduction without court approval.

Police reports have been made and the police have directed the MACC to investigate. Nothing seems to have transpired.

The government must take immediate action to correct all the shortcomings as stated above.

The Malaysian Co-operative Commission has not been incorporated as per parliament legislation. It is deemed to be illegal.

The “garis panduan” is deemed signature crazy and invalid. It has not been gazetted as per the by-laws. 

The above information has been analyzed and extracted from: -

1.) Co-operatives Society's Act

2.) Co-operative Commission Act

3.) As per the vesting orders in accordance to the co-operative act.

From the incomplete and illegal annual reports of the co-operative commission passage through parliament for the years ending 2008 till today.

Proposed:-

1.) Overall program evaluation and management audit. (OPE / MA)

2.) Majlis gabungan dan repulihan gerakan koperasi. (A private sector initiative)

Breaking news: The respective deputy minister has highlighted that 3000 co-operatives are dormant and defunct. Immediate action has to be taken to re-structure these co-operatives to activity.

 


Thuraisingham Shan (016-243 8457),

Co-operative & Management Consultant,

Hon Secretary URUSKOP,

Persatuan Usahawan & Pengurusan Islam Malaysia,

Secretariat Entrepreneur & Islamic Association of Management Malaysia,

(1st Malaysian to be awarded the Bonow Fellowship by the International Co-operative Alliance & Among the 9 Nominees Worldwide of the ROCHDALE PIONEER Award of the CO- operatives International Co-operative Alliance)

Selected as a member of the Justice Madavadas Committee to revamp the Indian Co-operative sector which is recognized as the most co-operative conscious country in the world.

Secretary: Finance Bureau of CO-Operative Union of Malaysia

Advisor: Co-operative Union of Malaysia (Midlands Co-operative Union of Malaysia)

Former Secretary General: Malaysian Ceylonese Congress Malaysia

Former Director: Jaffanese Co-operative Housing Society

Note:- The above short comings have been conveyed to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) on a number of times. The Malaysian Police (PDRM) has also directed the MACC to investigate the matter. It is surprising that no action has been initiated over the years.

Due to MACC which had classified the matter as “No Further Action” (NFA), the Malaysian Attorney Generals Chambers will now probe shortcomings in the Malaysian Cooperatives sector.

It is appreciated if firm action is taken to correct this precarious status immediately. The SKM malfunctioning over 15 years is simply disgusting.