It has been a year since Telekom Malaysia Bhd (TM) had a managing director-cum-group CEO. And the reason why an appointment has been delayed for so long is of deep concern.
To recap, a candidate was identified and proposed by TM’s board of directors to the telco’s special shareholder, the Minister of Finance Inc (MoF Inc), in November last year. MoF Inc approved the candidate — Imri Mokhtar — and got the support of Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
In February, Minister of Finance Lim Guan Eng sent a letter to TM chairman Rosli Man, company secretary Hamizah Abidin and designated CEO Imri, informing them of the decision. But nothing happened.
The Edge Financial Daily reported last Friday that the matter has been in limbo because Rosli has refused to act on the decision by MoF Inc.
Late last Friday, TM, in a statement to Bursa Malaysia, said the appointment was deferred on a directive from someone in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).
“We believe that it is good corporate governance to engage key stakeholders, including the Prime Minister’s Office,” TM said in the statement.
However, the statement raises even more unsettling questions.
https://www.theedgemarkets.com/article/frankly-speaking-who-pmo-blocked-naming-tm-ceo