Muhyiddin to sue Anwar over Felda debt write-off issue

KUALA LUMPUR – Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said he is going ahead with his legal action for slander against Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

This, said the former prime minister, was after Anwar failed to prove that he had written off the debts of Felda settlers and apologise to Muhyiddin.

“As Anwar has failed to present an open and unconditional apology to me within 24 hours as contained in my lawyer’s letter of demand to him, I have since instructed my lawyer to continue with the defamation lawsuit against him,” Muhyiddin said in a statement on Facebook yesterday.

Muhyiddin, who is also Perikatan Nasional chief, claimed that the document Anwar presented yesterday was about sukuk and not the debts.

“I have explained many times before that the document Anwar signed is regarding sukuk, not the Felda settlers’ debt waiver. The disclosure of that document proves I was telling the truth. The one who lied and defamed me is Anwar,” Muhyiddin said.

He said the Finance Ministry’s media release further confirmed that it is about a government guarantee of RM9.9 billion and not about disposing of the Felda settlers’ debts of RM8.3 billion which he said he settled in 2021.

Muhyiddin claimed that Anwar was “incompetent” to remain as prime minister.

Muhyiddin's former principal private secretary Datuk Marzuki Mohamad yesterday said the document released to the media by the Prime Minister’s Office was an agreement on the issuance of government-guaranteed sukuk and not an 80% debt waiver of the Felda setters.

“The document released by PMO does not prove that the debt waiver of the settlers was made only last June as this is about the issuance of government-guaranteed sukuk which was part of the cabinet decision back in 2020,” he said.

On July 7, Anwar announced a restructuring programme that would wipe out most of the RM8.3 billion in debt amassed by Felda settlers.

He said Muhyiddin had failed to execute this when he was prime minister.

The following day, Muhyiddin insisted he was responsible for executing this decision in 2021, accusing Anwar of lying to claim credit. – The Vibes, July 21, 2023