KUALA LUMPUR (July 18): TH Plantations Bhd (KL:THPLANT), the plantation arm of Lembaga Tabung Haji, on Friday issued show cause letters to both its chief executive officer (CEO) Mohamed Zainurin Mohamed Zain and chief financial officer (CFO) Marliyana Omar.
This is due to alleged unauthorised payments totalling RM5.1 million made to plantation workers.
Following that, Zainurin has been placed on garden leave, which took effect on the same day, and will remain in place until further notice, according to the group’s filing with Bursa Malaysia.
However, Marliyana, 44, who was appointed to the position on April 14, 2023, has voluntarily tendered her resignation with immediate effect.
Zainurin, 58, has been TH Plantations CEO since Oct 1, 2021. Prior to this, he was the financial controller at New Britain Palm Oil Ltd, a subsidiary of Sime Darby Plantation Bhd, now known as SD Guthrie Bhd (KL:SDG), based in Papua New Guinea.
He also previously served as senior vice-president of an agrifood unit of Khazanah Nasional Bhd and held several senior positions in the sovereign fund’s subsidiaries and joint ventures.
In the interim, TH Plantations’ operations will be overseen by a newly formed board executive committee led by its chairman Datuk Dr Ahmad Kushairi Din. Joining him on the committee are independent non-executive director Kasmuri Sukardi, non-independent non-executive director Nor Adila Ismail and chief operating officer Alikamal Abu Hassan.
"The company shall continue its business as usual," TH Plantations said.
In 2019, TH Plantations sacked its then CFO Mohamed Azman Shah Ishak — who had served the group for over nine years — following a nearly two-month suspension after receiving a show cause letter.
The dismissal came in the wake of a forensic audit exercise initiated by a newly appointed management team tasked with turning around the company. However, the findings of the audit were never publicly disclosed.
At the time, Marliyana, then assistant general manager in the finance department, along with senior manager Hamidah Hassan, stepped in to assume the CFO’s responsibilities on an interim basis.
The group reported a 1.5% decline in its net profit for the first quarter ended March 31, 2025 (1QFY2025) to RM12.8 million from RM13 million a year earlier, despite a 21% year-on-year increase in the average crude palm oil (CPO) price to RM4,577 per metric tonne during the quarter.
The weaker earnings were attributed to lower sales volumes, smaller fair value gains on biological assets, unrealised foreign exchange losses and a shortage of skilled harvesters.
Revenue for the quarter rose 13.9% to RM179.1 million, underpinned by higher average selling prices of CPO, palm kernel, and fresh fruit bunches.
No dividend was declared for the period.
It noted that while CPO prices were lifted by factors such as adverse weather, ageing trees and reduced production, prices may remain volatile in the months ahead due to global uncertainties and trade policy developments.
TH Plantations' share price gained half a sen or 0.9% to close at 54 sen on Friday, giving it a market value of RM477.3 million.