Company Records
Miracle Harvest's details in the Register of Companies. The address is the same as Kumpulan Parabena's offices in Jalan Sungai, Padungan. It has yet to "commence operations", but the State of Sarawak has already handed it 12,000 hectares! In the case of Miracle Harvest, the approval had already been given by the Land Regsitry for an award to the company of 12,000 hectares for the purpose of oil palm plantation (OPL) three weeks before its actual incorporation date! Land titles handed out to a company before it even comes into existence! A case of ’Miraculous Pre-conception’? So, can one detect the Hand of God behind such amazing developments, or perhaps just that of Abdul Taib Mahmud, who doubles up as the Head of the Land Custody and Development Agency? The LCDA has been taking Native Customary Lands in the name of the State Government and then handing it to close Taib family members like his sister Raziah and son Mahmud Abu Bekir Taib and several others in a pattern that has been escalating in recent years.

Land Registry Records
Robert Geneid is the person registered as the representative of Miracle Harvest in the Land Registry. His office at Kumpulan Parabena is the contact address
From stall-holder's son to millionaire - Geneid made it big after marrying Raziah!

We can see that in the case of Miracle Harvest Raziah’s husband Robert Geneid is clearly marked as the contact for the Land Title in the Land Registry. He also lists his office and phone number as that of the Kumpulan Parabena HQ in Kuching, thus directly implicating the Chief Minister in the deal, who has a major stake in Kumpulan Parabena.

Cheap premiums mean the state loses revenue
Our research indicates that the land given to Miracle Harvest was indeed handed out very cheap indeed and now commands a far higher market price. A total of 11 lots were handed to Miracle Havest along with a sister company also owned by the Geneids, Green Ace Resources, on just one day 25.5.2005. They amounted to 20,000 hectares for an over all price of just RM 15 million. The stated purpose for the hand out is”OPL”, meaning Oil Plantation. Elia Abas Geneid, Raziah's daughter (left with champagne bottle) has also benefitted from huge hand outs of land from her Uncle Taib's government department. This low premium marked a very poor return for the taxpayer and a vast potential profit for the Mahmuds. Worse, such premiums are generally not demanded up front of Taib family members in deals like these. The payments are allowed to be deferred and delayed or paid in installments – usually (according to insiders) until the land has been sold on at a healthy profit! Kwantas's Annual Report of 2008, shows the acquisition of 70% of Miracle Harvest and Green Ace Resources was made after the granting of the Land Titles. However, the ownership quickly moved on from the Mahmuds of course. In 2006 the publicly-listed palm oil plantation company Kwantas announced that it had acquired 70% of the shares of Miracle Harvest (MHSB), along 70% of the sister company Green Ace Resources, which is also registered under the Kumpulan Parabena address. It can only be as part of the same set of deals that Green Ace Resources (GARSB) was handed a huge area of 7,000 hectares in Mukah in the region of the Sungai Narub Reserve Forest on the very same day in 2005 that Miracle Harvest gained its own land titles. Kwantas announced it had payed around RM 17million for the 70% purchase of these two companies, whereas the original premium for the entire amount charged earlier from Parabena was circa RM 15 million.Sarawak Report would therefore like to ask who Kwantas paid for the acquisition which was made several months after Miracle Harvest/Green Ace acquired the Land Titles? Was it Miracle Harvest, which was still not yet officially operating, according to the Company Register? We also ask why it is that, although Kwantas had acquired most of the shares of the company, Miracle Harvest continues to be based at the Parabena Office and is represented by Robert Geneid?

MHSB handed 12 thousand of hectares on 25.5.2005 via Robert Geneid, now 70% owned by Kwantas
Sister companies. Green Ace Resources handed 7,000 hectares via Robert Geneid 25.05.2005. Later 70% acquired by Kwantas - Now up for sale!

Up for sale!
We can now reveal that Kwantas has just started to dispose of its shareholdings in these land titles, giving us a good view of the genuine current market price! The State of Sarawak originally received just RM 5 million for the 7,000 hectares of land awarded to Green Ace Resources, yet last month Kwantas announced an agreement to sell its 70% stake for a whopping RM 32.4 million! This means that the 30% of the shares still held by the Geneids are worth roughly half that amount – the same that was charged for the entire 20,000 hectares property portfolio handed to them by Raziah’s brother and business partner, Chief Minister Taib Mahmud, in 2005. Sell-off, subject to conditions, is underway to Golden Agri Resources, part of Indonesia's vast Sinar Mas timber company. The real miracle would be if Raziah and Robert failed to cash in on their back-breaking efforts!

NCR Land?
Selling on land with just a provisional lease? Tricky now that the Native Land Rights cases are starting to do so well in court! Of equal concern is the status of this land which is being sold on. The Kwantas statement makes clear that the land lease is still provisional. This means that officially some further agreement is needed before oil palm clearances can begin. In practice the ‘provisional’ aspect of such licences are frequently and disgracefully brushed aside in Sarawak, as plantation companies simply ignore the existence of Native Customary Rights of the communities whose land they take. Given they have paid so much money to the Head of Government’s relatives to get it their attitude is perhaps understandable? Certainly, in a recent court case the judge laid the blame for a similar situation on the state government for handing out NCR land rather than on the company that had bought the titles. It is likely that as the number of native land rights succeeding in the courts increase that platation companies will be less willing to buy such plots from Taib’s many relatives!

Is this land suitable for oil palm? The lease is only 'provisional'
So what is the problem with Lot 1 Block 194 Oya-Dalat Land District at Sungai Narub, Mukah? Is it disputed Native Customary Rights Land? is it part of the Sungai Narub Reserve Forest? Or could it be both?

Greenwash peril?
The company to whom this land is being sold is the massive Golden Agri Resources Sdn Bhd, which is the Indonesian Oil Palm arm of the notorious timber giant Sinar Mas. Golden Agri made a major ‘Green PR’ gesture earlier this month, Feb 9th, when it announced to the world that it will in future stop all further deforestation in Indonesia. Can we be reassured that Raziah and Robert’s miracle Company will miraculously manage to fulfil the new-found green and ethical credentials of their new buyer as this sale proceeds?

MIRACLE HARVEST MENDATANGKAN KEUNTUNGAN YANG AJAIB UNTUK RAZIAH DAN ROBERT! Monday, February 28th, 2011 GMT This post is also available in: English (Sarawak Report)
Syarikat Miracle Harvest S/B, milik Raziah Mahmud, adik kepada Ketua Menteri, dan suaminya Robert Geneid, sememangnya memperolehi keuntungan yang menakjubkan. Keuntungan yang menakjubkan bagi mereka adalah kerana syarikat berkenaan yang belum lagi beroperasi secara rasmi, menurut Pendaftar Syarikat-Syarikat Malaysia! Sama seperti syarikat-syarikat tanah Raziah yang lainnya, Miracle Harvest, yang dikorporatkan pada 15hb Jun 2005, adalah beralamat di ibupejabat Kumpulan Parabena Sdn. Bhd. Kumpulan Parabena adalah dikendalikan oleh keluarga Geneid dan kami pula boleh mendedahkan bahawa Ketua Menteri Abdul Taib Mahmud mempunyai pegangan saham-sahamnya menerusi syarikat Mesti Bersatu. Berdasarkan kajian-kajian kami geran-geran tanah yang telah dianugerahkan kepada pelbagai syarikat yang beralamat di ibupejabat yang sama, adalah melebihi keluasan kepulauan Singapura!

Rekod-rekod syarikat
Dalam kes Miracle Harvest, kelulusan telah diberikan oleh pejabat Pendaftar Tanah ke atas tanah seluas 12,000 hektar untuk perladangan kelapa sawit hanya tiga minggu sebelum syarikat itu dikorporatkan! Geran tanah yang dianugerahkan kepada sebuah syarikat yang sebelum ini tidak wujud! Jadi, dapatkah seseorang mengesan kehadiran Tangan Tuhan bekerja disebalik kemajuan yang menakjubkan ini, atau mungkin Taib Mahmud yang juga selaku Pengerusi Land Custody and Development Agency (LCDA)? Pihak LCDA telah mengambil tanah-tanah NCR atas nama Kerajaan Negeri dan kemudian menyerahkan tanah-tanah itu kepada keluarga Taib terutamanya kepada adiknya Raziah dan anaknya Mahmud Abu Bekir Taib, dan saudara-saudaranya yang lain.

Rekod-rekod dalam simpanan Pendaftar Tanah
Dalam keadaan syarikat Miracle Harvest suami Raziah, Robert Geneid adalah dinamakan sebagai orang yang boleh dihubungi berkaitan dengan geran tanah-tanah dalam simpanan Pendaftar Tanah. Dia juga telah meletakkan lokasi dan nombor telefon pejabatnya, yang sama dengan ibupejabat Kumpulan Parabena di Kuching, yang jelas menunjukkan bahawa Ketua Menteri terlibat langsung sebagai pemegang.

Premium-premium yang rendah bermakna rendahnya hasil negeri
Kajian-kajian kami mendapati bahawa tanah-tanah yang diserahkan kepada Miracle Harvest sebenarnya berharga murah tetapi setelah apabila ianya dijualkan semula harga pasarannya boleh melonjak.tinggi. Sejumlah 11 lot telah diserahkan kepada Miracle Harvest dan sebuah lagi syarikat milik keluarga Geneid, Green Ace Resources, hanya dalam satu hari sahaja (iaitu pada 25.5.2005). Kesemua tanah tersebut berjumlah 20,000 hektar dengan premium hanya RM15 juta sahaja. Tanah-tanah yang telah diserahkan tersebut ditandakan sebagai “OPL” – “Oil Plantation” (tanah untuk perladangan kelapa sawit). Premium yang rendah ini bererti pulangan yang kecil kepada dana para pembayar cukai, tetapi keuntungan yang sangat lumayan pada keluarga Taib Mahmud. Ada kalanya, keluarga Taib tidak diminta untuk menjelaskan premium-premium itu ketika penyerahan dilakukan – dan menurut sumber dalaman, bayaran premium itu akan dijelaskan secara ansuran atau sebaik sahaja tanah-tanah itu dapat dijual. Namun, pemilikan tanah-tanah tersebut telah berpindah dari keluarga Taib Mahmud. Pada tahun 2006 sebuah syarikat awam perladangan kelapa sawit, Kwantas telah mengumumkan bahawa ianya telah memperolehi 70% saham-saham dalam Miracle Harvest S/B (MHSB), dan juga 70% saham-saham dalam Green Ace Resources, di mana kedua-duanya beralamat di ibupejabat Kumpulan Parabena. Pada suatu perjanjian Green Ace Resources S/B (GARSB) telah menerima suatu kawasan seluas 7,000 hektar di Mukah, di sebuah kawasan Hutan Simpan Sungai Narub pada hari yang sama pada tahun 2005 di mana MHSB telah memperolehi geran-geran tanah juga. Kwantas telah mengumumkan ianya telah membayar kira-kita RM17 juta untuk bahagian 70% sahamnya pada kedua-dua syarikat berkenaan, sementara itu premium asal untuk keseluruhan harga yang telah terlebih dahulu dituntut dari Parabena adalah kira-kira RM15 juta. Sarawak Report ingin bertanya, kepada siapakah Kwantas membayar untuk pemerolehan tanah-tanah beberapa bulan setelah Miracle Harvest S/B mendapatkan geran-geran tanah itu? Adakah bayaran itu dibuat kepada Miracle Harvest yang belum didaftarkan untuk beroperasi, berdasarkan maklumat daripada pejabat Pendaftar Syarikat-syarikat? Kami juga ingin bertanya kenapakah MHSB terus beribupejabat di alamat Kumpulan Parabena dan diwakili oleh Robert Geneid, walaupun Kwantas telah memperolehi kebanyakan saham-saham berkenaan.

Untuk dijual!
Kini kami boleh mendedahkan bahawa Kwantas telah mula untuk melepaskan pegangannya ke atas geran-geran tanah berkenaan yang akan memberikan gambaran jelas kepada kita harga pasaran sebenarnya! Kerajaan Negeri Sarawak pada mulanya menerima hanya RM5 juta bagi bayaran 7,000 hektar tanah yang diserahkan kepada Green Ace Resources, tetapi pada akhir bulan lalu Kwantas mengumumkan persetujuannya menjual 70% sahamnya pada harga RM32.4 juta! Ini bermakna 30% pegangan yang ada pada keluarga Geneid dijangkakan bernilai separuh dari itu – harga yang sama dikenakan ke atas keseluruhan 20,000 hektar portfolio harta yang diserahkan kepada mereka oleh abang Raziah yang juga rakan-niaganya, Ketua Menteri Taib Mahmud, dalam tahun 2005.

Tanah NCR?
Apa yang meragukan adalah status tanah yang telah dijual ini. Kenyataan yang dikeluarkan oleh Kwantas jelas menunjukkan bahawa geran tanah itu masih berstatus sementara. Ini bermakna bahawa beberapa perjanjian rasmi diperlukan sebelum pembukaan tanah untuk tujuan perladangan boleh dimulakan. Seperti yang selalu diamalkan, aspek ‘status sementara’ lesen-lesen itu diketepikan dan tidak dihiraukan di Sarawak, kerana syarikat-syarikat ladang kelapa sawit memandang remeh kewujudan NCR masyarakat-masyarakat asli yang dirampas tanah-tanah mereka. Memandangkan mereka telah membayar harga yang amat tinggi kepada ahli keluarga Ketua Kerajaan, maka kita boleh jangkakan sikap mereka ke atas tanah itu. Jelaslah, pada kes mahkamah yang lalu hakim telah menyalahkan kerajaan negeri kerana menyerahkan tanah NCR, dan bukannya menyalahkan syarikat-syarikat yang telah membeli geran-geran tanah itu. Nampaknya kes-kes tanah NCR yang semakin banyak dimenangi oleh orang-orang asli, maka trend pembelian tanah-tanah daripada keluarga Taib Mahmud dijangkakan semakin menurun! Adakah masalah itu pada Lot 1, Blok 194 Oya-Dalat Land District di Sungai Narub Mukah? Adakah persengketaan tanah NCR? Adakah ianya sebahagian dari Hutan Simpan Sungai Narub? Atau adakah kedua-duanya sekali?

Bahaya “Greenwash”?
Syarikat yang membeli tanah-tanah berkenaan adalah Golden Agri Resources S/B, sebuah syarikat Perladangan Kelapa Sawit Indonesia yang rakus milik syarikat pembalakan gergasi Sinar Mas. Golden Agri telah mengeluarkan kenyataan bersifat ‘kehijauan’ pada awal bulan ini, 9hb Februari, apabila mereka mengumumkan bahawa mereka akan berhenti menebang pokok-pokok di Indonesia. Bolehkah kita percaya pada syarikat Miracle Harvest milik Raziah dan Robert yang akan menjualkan tanah-tanah kepada Golden Agri yang kononnya beralih menjadi sahabat alam sekitar?