KUALA LUMPUR, April 27 — Primary Industries Minister Teresa Kok said the government has imposed a moratorium on the Malaysian Rubber Board (MRB) in property and real estate development activities.
She said the move was to allow the custodian of the local rubber industry to focus on efforts to strengthen the said sector.
“Apart from palm oil, another main national commodity is the rubber sector. In strengthening the rubber sector, the ministry enforced a stabilisation process for LGM,” she said, referring to the Malay acronym of MRB.
“With regards to this, LGM no longer prioritise property development. A moratorium has been enforced upon LGM to not continue any activities in relation to property development,” Kok added.
The minister made the announcement in an interview session with several media agencies in Putrajaya recently.
Malay Mail was made to understand that in the past, MRB had “slightly diverted” from its main objectives, and was involved in real estate, which its management had no experience in.
The ministry, therefore, decided to pull MRB back on track, to avoid any problems from the agency’s involvement in a business, completely unrelated to its core mission.
“To avoid any issues related to property development and mismanagement, the current board have put a moratorium on all property development, and return MRB to its original cause, which is to emphasise on research and development.
“This is for the upstream and downstream sectors, for the benefit of the rubber industry, according to its Act 551 of the Malaysian Rubber Board (Incorporation) Act 1996,” Kok told Malay Mail on the sidelines.
The Act highlights the objectives of the MRB, as well as the functions and powers of the agency’s board.
Kok said that LGM Properties Corporation (LGMPC), an arm under the MRB will, however still to manage some assets owned by MRB, and will continue in its current role.
