Plantation giants should plough back earnings - PBS
Sunday, 13 July 2003 (Source: Bernama)

SEMPORNA: Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) Sunday called on non-Sabahan plantation owners to plough back estate earnings into the state economy and reduce dependence on foreign labour by investing in training of local manpower.

PBS deputy president Datuk Dr Maximus Ongkili said that some 80 percent of Sabah's total industrial crop acreage was held by large non-Sabahan companies which contributed minimally to the local economy, aside from payment of oil palm sales tax.

"This situation exists because farm earnings are expatriated in various forms rather than re-invested to generate multiplier effects in the domestic economy," he said when opening the Sulabayan PBS annual general meeting here.

Ongkili claimed that foreign companies' contribution to the growth of the local economy was far below expectation.

"Most of the large oil palm plantations are owned by public listed companies based in Kuala Lumpur. Monthly or quarterly earnings are expatriated to their headquarters while foreign labourers' wages are expatriated to their countries of origin," he said.

Ongkili, who is Bandau MP, said it was also public knowledge that most of the plantation companies employed non-local managers, supervisors and management personnel while labourers were almost entirely foreigners.

"The net effect is a disheartening scenario. Very little money is ploughed back into the state's economic system.

"Worse still, most farm implements, machinery, fertiliser, chemicals and even food items are imported directly from their headquarters outside the state rather than from local outlets," he said.

Very often, he said, contract work such as clearing, replanting and inputs supply were given to their subsidiaries rather than local companies.

"On this matter, even Felda Sahabat (in Lahad Datu) is equally a culprit," he said.