The States of MALAYSIA ~Kelantan Darul Naim

Kelantan is a state of Malaysia. The capital and royal seat is Kota Bharu. The Arabic honorific of the state is Darul Naim, ("The Blissful Abode").

Kelantan is positioned in the north-east of Peninsular Malaysia. It is bordered by Narathiwat Province of Thailand to the north, Terengganu to the south-east, Perak to the west, and Pahang to the south. To the north-east of Kelantan is the South China Sea.

Kelantan is located in the north-eastern corner of the peninsula, Kelantan, which is said to translate as the "Land of Lightning" (see alternate theories below), is an agrarian state with lush paddy fields, rustic fishing villages and casuarina-lined beaches. Kelantan is home to some of the most ancient archaeological discoveries in Malaysia, including several prehistoric aboriginal settlements
 

The name Kelantan is said to be a corruption of gelam hutan, i.e. the Malay word for the cajuput, or swamp tea tree (Melaleuca leucadendron). Other theories claim the name comes from the Malay word kilatan, 'shiny/glittery' or kolam tanah, 'clay pool'. Kelantan was called Klantan (Thai: กลันตัน) by the Siamese when it was under their influence.
Constitution

The Constitution of Kelantan came into force in 1949 and is divided into two sections:

    * The first part of the laws
    * The second part of the laws enforced upon the people

The Sultan of Kelantan  is the Constitutional Ruler of his State. The role, duties and powers of the Sultan are as laid out in the State's constitution and other state laws. The Constitution proclaims that the executive power of the state is vested in the sultan, that he is the Head of the Religion of Islam in the state and that he is the source of all honours and dignities in the state
 

The State Executive Council is established by the constitution. It is composed of the Menteri Besar, who is its chairman, and ten other members. The Menteri Besar and other members of the council are appointed by the Sultan of Kelantan from members of the State Assembly.
 

Oil Royalties

The Assignment Deed - 9 May 1975

In 1975, an agreement was signed between the Kelantan Chief Minister of the time Datuk Mohammad Nasir, and the Chairman of Petronas, Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah. According to the terms of the agreement, Kelantan was to receive oil royalties of 5 percent a year biannially, for any oil found in Kelantan or her coastal areas. In return, Kelantan grants Petronas to exclusive rights to "petroleum whether lying onshore or offshore of Malaysia". As to the issue arises here is whether Kelantan has the right to claim oil royalties from Federal Government as enumerated in the Assignment Deed. The question arises put so much legal complication and it is trans-border many relevant statues namely Petroleum Development Act 1974, Petroleum Mining Act 1966 and requires legal interpretation on some provisions in Federal Constitution. Being the Supreme Law of the Land, any law or any agreements enacted inconsistent with Federal Constitution shall be void. Since, Malaysia is a federation of 13 states, the division of powers between two level of governments (Central government and State government) are the most important feature in Federal Constitution. Relevant with the issue, Article 76 gives powers to two level of governments accordingly set out in Schedule Ninth. In Schedule 9, List I of the Federal Constitution, the following topics are assigned to the Federal Government:

• Except as to State rights over permits and licences, the Federal Government has rights over development of mineral resources, mines, mining, minerals and mineral ores, oils and oilfields, petroleum products, safety in mines and oilfields
• Gas and gasworks, production and distribution of power and energy
• Foreign and extra-territorial jurisdiction
• Treaties, agreements and conventions with other countries and all matters which bring the Federation into relations with any other country

As for the State Government:

• Land: Schedule 9 List II, Para 2(a). Under the Interpretation Acts, 1948 and 1967, Section 3, land includes “the surface of the earth … all substances therein… all vegetations and other natural products… whether on or below the surface… and land covered by water”. The territorial waters of Kelantan will come within the definition of “land covered by water”. Territorial waters are defined by Section 4(2) of the Emergency (Essential Powers) Ordinance No 7, 1969. Subject to some exceptions, they refer to three nautical miles.
• Revenue from lands: Schedule 10, Part III Para 2.
• In addition to the income from land, one notes that in Article 110[3A] there is provision for discretionary payment on such terms and conditions as maybe prescribed by or under federal law of the export duty on “mineral oils” produced in the state. Petroleum comes within the meaning of “mineral oils” under Section 10 of the Petroleum Development Act.

Capital~Kota Bharu
Royal capital~Kota Bharu
Area Total~14,922 km2 (5,761.4 sq mi)
Pattani control~1603
Siamese control~1842
Japanese occupation~1942-1946
Accession into Federation of Malaya~1948

The Flag of Kelantan

Kelantan Coat of Arms

Thaksin Shinawatra ทักษิณ ชินวัตร

Thaksin Shinawatra (Thai: ทักษิณ ชินวัตร, pronounced [tʰáksǐn tɕʰinnawát]  Chinese: 丘達新; ) is a Thai billionaire politician and businessman who was Prime Minister of Thailand from 2001 to 2006, when he was deposed in a military coup.

Born~26 July 1949 (1949-07-26) (age 61)
San Kamphaeng, Chiang Mai, Thailand
Nationality~Thai
Political party~Thai Rak Thai (formerly)
Spouse~ Potjaman Shinawatra (1980–2008)
Profession~Businessman Entrepreneur
Religion~ Buddhism
Signature   

23rd Prime Minister of Thailand
In office~9 February 2001 – 19 September 2006
Monarch~Rama IX

Special Economic Adviser to Cambodia
In office~4 November 2009 – 23 August 2010
Monarch ~Norodom Sihamoni
Prime Minister~Hun Sen

Early life
Thaksin was born in San Kamphaeng, Chiang Mai province. He lived in the village of San Kamphaeng until he was 15, then moved to Chiang Mai city to study at Montfort College. At 16, he helped run one of his father's cinemas

Thaksin's great-great-grandfather Seng Sae Khu was a Hakka Chinese immigrant from Meizhou, Guangdong who arrived in Siam in the 1860s and settled in Chiang Mai in 1908. His eldest son, Chiang Sae Khu, was born in 1890 and married a Thai woman, Saeng Somna. Chiang's eldest son, Sak, adopted the Thai surname Shinawatra ("does good routinely") in 1938, and the rest of the family followed suit.

Thaksin's father, Lert, was born in Chiang Mai in 1919 and married Yindi Ramingwong (a daughter of Princess Jantip Na Chiang Mai). In 1968, Lert Shinawatra entered politics and became an MP for Chiang Mai.

Seng Sae Khu made his fortune through tax farming. The Khu/Shinawatra family later founded Shinawatra Silks and then moved into finance, construction and property development. Lert Shinawatra opened a coffee shop and several businesses, and grew oranges and flowers in Chiang Mai's San Kamphaeng district. By the time Thaksin was born, the extended Shinawatra family was one of the richest and most influential in Chiang Mai.

Thaksin married Potjaman Damapong in 1980. They have one son, Panthongtae and two daughters, Pintongtha and Peathongtarn. They divorced in 2008.

Police career
Thaksin Shinawatra was a member of the 10th class of the Armed Forces Academies Preparatory School, and was then admitted to the Thai Police Cadet Academy. Upon graduation in 1973, he joined the Royal Thai Police Department. He received a master's degree in Criminal Justice from Eastern Kentucky University in the United States in 1975, and three years later was awarded a doctorate in Criminal Justice at Sam Houston State University in Texas. Returning to Thailand, he reached the position of Deputy Superintendent of the Policy and Planning Sub-division, General Staff Division, Metropolitan Police Bureau, before resigning in 1987 as a lieutenant colonel. His wife, Potjaman Damapong, is the daughter of a police general.

Business career

Early ventures
Thaksin and his wife began several businesses while he was still in the police, including a silk shop, a movie theater, and an apartment building. All were failures and left him over 50 million baht in debt. In 1982 he established ICSI; using his police contacts, he leased computers to government agencies with modest success. However, later ventures in security systems (SOS) and public bus radio services (Bus Sound) all failed. In April 1986, he founded Advanced Info Service (AIS), which started off as a computer rental business.

In 1987 Thaksin resigned from the police. He then marketed a romance drama called "Baan Sai Thong", which became a popular success in theaters. In 1988 he joined Pacific Telesis to operate and market the PacLink pager service, a modest success, though Thaksin later sold his shares to establish his own paging company. In 1989 he launched IBC, a cable television company, which lost money and eventually merged with the CP Group's UTV. In 1989, Thaksin established a data networking service, Shinawatra DataCom,] today known as Advanced Data Network and owned by AIS and the TOT. Many of Thaksin's businesses were later consolidated as Shin Corp.

Advance Info Service and later ventures
Founded in April 1986, Advanced Info Service (AIS) started off as a computer rental business. In October 1990, it launched analog 900 MHz mobile phone services with a 20 year monopoly concession from the Telephone Organization of Thailand, and later became the first company allowed to operate on the GSM 900 frequency. The mobile phone boom in Thailand was just beginning, with Total Access Communications receiving a concession a month later for the GSM 1800 frequency. AIS grew rapidly and was listed on the Stock Exchange of Thailand in November 1991. It established a GSM network in 1994 and eventually became the largest mobile phone operator in Thailand.

The Shinawatra Computer and Communications Group was founded in 1987 and listed in 1990.

In 1990, Thaksin founded Shinawatra Satellite, which has developed and operated four Thaicom communications satellites.

In 1999, the Shinawatra family spent some 1 billion baht establishing Shinawatra University in Pathum Thani. It offered international programs in engineering, architecture, and business management.

In 2000, Thaksin acquired the ailing iTV television station from the Crown Property Bureau, Nation Multimedia Group, and Siam Commercial Bank.

Entry into politics

Political debut
Thaksin entered politics in late 1994 through Chamlong Srimuang, who had just reclaimed the position of Palang Dharma Party (PDP) leader from Boonchu Rojanastien. In a subsequent purge of Boonchu-affiliated PDP Cabinet ministers, Thaksin was appointed Foreign Minister in December 1994, replacing Prasong Soonsiri. Twelve years later, after Thaksin was removed from power, Chamlong Srimuang expressed regret at getting "such a corrupt person" into politics. The PDP soon withdrew from the government over the Sor Por Kor 4-01 land reform corruption scandal, causing the government of Chuan Leekpai to collapse.

PDP leader and Deputy Prime Minister under Banharn
Chamlong, strongly criticized for mishandling internal PDP politics in the last days of the Chuan-government, retired from politics and hand-picked Thaksin as new PDP leader. Thaksin ran for election for the first time for the constitutional tribunal and lost.

Thaksin joined the government of Banharn Silpa-Archa and was appointed Deputy Prime Minister in charge of Bangkok traffic. In May 1996, he and four other PDP ministers quit the Banharn Cabinet (while retaining their MP seats), prompting a Cabinet reshuffle. Many have claimed that Thaksin's move was designed to help give Chamlong Srimuang a boost in the June 1996 Bangkok Governor elections, which Chamlong returned from retirement to contest.But Chamlong lost to Bhichit Rattakul, an independent.

Chamlong's failure to buttress the PDP's failing power base in Bangkok amplified divisions in the PDP, particularly between Chamlong's "temple" faction and Thaksin's. Soon afterwards, Chamlong announced he was retiring again from politics.

Thaksin and the PDP pulled out of the Banharn-government in August 1996. In a subsequent no-confidence debate, the PDP gave evidence against the Banharn government, and in September 1996 Banharn dissolved Parliament.

Thaksin announced he would not run in the subsequent November 1996 elections but would remain as leader of the PDP. It suffered a fatal defeat in the elections, winning only one seat, and soon imploded, with most members resigning.

Deputy Prime Minister under Chavalit
On 15 August 1997, Thaksin became Deputy Prime Minister in Chavalit Yongchaiyudh's government, after the Thai baht was floated and devalued on 2 July 1997, sparking the Asian Financial Crisis. He held the position for only three months, leaving on 14 November when Chavalit resigned.

During a censure debate on 27 September 1997, Democrat Suthep Thaugsuban accused Thaksin of profiting from insider information about the government's decision to float the baht, but the next Democrat party-led government did not investigate the accusations.

During this period, Thaksin also served on the Asia Advisory Board of the Washington D.C. based Carlyle Group until he resigned upon becoming Prime Minister in 2001.

The Thai Rak Thai Party and the 2001 elections
Thaksin founded the Thai Rak Thai ("Thais Love Thais" – TRT) party in 1998 along with Somkid Jatusripitak, PDP ally Sudarat Keyuraphan, Purachai Piumsombun, and 19 others.

With a populist platform often attributed to Somkid, TRT promised universal access to healthcare, a 3-year debt moratorium for farmers, and 1 million THB locally managed development funds for all Thai villages.

After Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai dissolved parliament in November 2000, TRT won a sweeping victory in the January 2001 elections, the first held under the Constitution of 1997. At the time, some academics called it the most open, corruption-free election in Thai history. Thai Rak Thai won 248 parliamentary seats (more than any other party previously) and needed only 3 more seats to form a government. Nonetheless, Thaksin opted for a broad coalition to gain total control and avoid a vote of no confidence, with the Chart Thai Party (41 seats) and the New Aspiration Party (36 seats), while absorbing the smaller Seritham Party (14 seats).

Prime Minister of Thailand

Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and Deputy Prime Minister Surakiart Sathirathai on 19 September 2005

Thaksin Shinawatra was the first prime minister of Thailand to complete a full term in office, and his rule is generally agreed to have been one of the most distinctive in the country's modern history He initiated many eye-catching policies that distinguished him from his predecessors. They affected the economy, public health, education, energy, social order, drug suppression and international relations. He gained two re-election victories.

Thaksin's most effective policies were reducing rural poverty and the introduction of universal healthcare, allowing him to galvanise the vast and largely untapped support base of the rural poor, especially in the populous northeast.

His Cabinet consisted of a broad coalition of academics, former student leaders, and former leaders of the Phalang Dharma party, including Prommin Lertsuridej, Chaturon Chaisang, Prapat Panyachatraksa, Surapong Suebwonglee, Somkid Jatusripitak, Surakiart Sathirathai, and Sudarat Keyuraphan. Traditional regional power brokers also flocked to his government.

However, his government was increasingly accused of dictatorship, demagogy, corruption, conflicts of interest, human rights offences, acting undiplomatically, using legal loopholes and displaying hostility towards a free press. A highly controversial leader, he has also been the target of numerous allegations of lèse-majesté, treason, usurping religious and royal authority, selling assets to international investors, and religious desecration

Others
In 2008, Thaksin was found guilty in a Thai court of corruption and sentenced in absentia to two years imprisonment. As of today, he has not served the sentence and remains a fugitive. Thaksin briefly owned Manchester City Football Club  from 2007 to 2008. Following a prolonged series of violent political protests in Bangkok from March to May 2010, in which 88 people died, Thai court issued a warrant for the arrest of Thaksin on terrorism charges.

Thaksin entered politics in 1994 under Phalang Dharma Party, left the party with many of its MPs in 1996, in effect eviscerating it, and founded the populist Thai Rak Thai (TRT) party in 1998. After a historic election victory in 2001, he became prime minister, the country's first to serve a full term. Thaksin introduced a range of partly effective policies to alleviate rural poverty; highly popular, they helped reduce poverty by half in four years. He launched the country's first universal healthcare program, the 30-baht scheme, as well as a severely human-rights violating but also highly popular drug suppression campaign. After his purchases of MPs from other political parties, most notably the New Aspiration Party founded by Chavalit Yongchaiyudh, his Thai Rak Thai party won an unprecedented landslide in the 2005 general election, which had the highest voter turnout in Thai history.

However, the Shinawatra government also faced allegations of electoral fraud, corruption, authoritarianism, treason, conflicts of interest, acting non-diplomatically, and muzzling of the press. Thaksin was accused of tax evasion, lèse majesté (insulting the dignity of a reigning sovereign) and selling national assets to international investors. Independent bodies, including Amnesty International, criticized Thaksin's human rights record.

Protests by the People's Alliance for Democracy occurred in 2006, and on 19 September 2006 a military junta which later called itself the Council for National Security overthrew Thaksin's government in a coup while he was abroad. A CNS-appointed constitutional tribunal dissolved the Thai Rak Thai party for electoral fraud ex post facto, banning him and TRT's executives from politics for five years.The CNS-appointed Assets Examination Committee froze Thaksin and his family's assets in Thailand, totaling 76 billion baht ($2.2 billion), claiming he had become unusually wealthy while in office. Thaksin and his wife had declared assets totaling 15.1 billion baht when he took office in 2001, although he had transferred many of his assets to his children and associates before taking office.

Thaksin returned to Thailand on 28 February 2008, after the People's Power Party, which he supported, won the post-coup elections. But after visiting Beijing for the 2008 Summer Olympics, he did not return to hear the final supreme court sentence and applied for asylum in the United Kingdom. This was not accepted so he had to move about from one country to another. In October, the Supreme Court found him guilty of a conflict of interest and sentenced him in absentia to two years in jail.

The People's Power Party was later banned by the Supreme Court, but party members regrouped to form the Pheu Thai Party, which Thaksin also supported. Thaksin has also been a supporter, and alleged bankroller, of the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (the "Red Shirts"). The Government revoked Thaksin's passport for his role in the UDD's protests during Songkran 2009. In 26 February 2010, the Supreme Court seized 46 billion baht of his frozen assets, after finding him guilty of abnormal wealth. In 2009 it was announced that Thaksin had obtained Montenegrin citizenship

Up Close and personal with Tun Ahmad Sarji Abdul Hamid

Saturday September 18, 2010
By ERROL OH
errol@thestar.com.my

PLEASED as he is with Ahmad Sarji: Attaining Eminence, the 2008 biography written by veteran journalist Lim Chang Moh, Tun Ahmad Sarji Abdul Hamid is not so sure if he has done the right thing in giving his blessing to the book project.

Because he was planning to come out with a memoir to add to the list of titles he had already authored, Ahmad Sarji initially rejected Lim’s proposal.

But the latter was persistent and Ahmad Sarji said yes on the condition that the book would be based largely on published materials and not interviews with others.

Despite this restriction, Lim had plenty to draw on. As he recalls in the preface to the book, he found himself “submerged in what seemed like an ocean of newspaper cuttings, books, magazines and speeches.”

Months later, he surfaced with a 460-page effort. Ahmad Sarji thinks Lim has done well. But so much so that things have been made a little harder for Ahmad Sarji, who complains: “He has taken for his book all of what I have to say! Until I don’t know what to write.”

That’s merely mock annoyance, of course. The fact is, if he wants to, Ahmad Sarji can easily produce several volumes on his experiences.

After all, this is a man who spent well over three decades in the civil service, heading it in the last six years as the chief secretary to the Government.

A month after his retirement in 1996, he was made chairman of Permodalan Nasional Bhd (PNB), a post that has led to seats on the boards of directors of some of Malaysia’s largest companies. Fourteen years on, he’s still with PNB.

Just his observations and inside knowledge on major corporate events in recent years are enough for an explosive tell-all book or two.

However, it’s definitely not Ahmad Sarji’s style to make waves with sensational revelations. You don’t get to be the highest-ranking officer in the public sector and the chairman of one of the country’s largest institutional investors by shocking and offending people.

No, as with most jobs, you rise to the top by being a quietly and consistently solid performer and by gaining the confidence of your bosses. And he has had mentors who have been instrumental during key phases of his career in government.

Life as DO

In the beginning, there was the late Tan Sri Dr Mohamad Said Mohamed. In 1963, when Mohamad Said was the Mentri Besar (MB) of Negri Sembilan, he picked Ahmad Sarji to become the district officer (DO) of Rembau.

The 25-year-old had been in the civil service for less than three years at the time. It had been Ahmad Sarji’s longtime ambition to become a DO, but he had reckoned that it would take at least four to five years.

Growing up in Tapah, at the foot of Cameron Highlands, he knew no other path to a better life than to join the civil service. There was some paternal push towards that direction; his father and his father’s brothers were civil servants.

On his own, as a teenager, he also realised that it was cool to work for the government, that there was such a thing as “the aura of the civil servant.”

He remembers watching the DOs, almost always a European during the colonial era, officiating at functions at the town padang.

“The DO was quite a personality in those days. People gravitated towards him and paid obeisance. I thought this was a nice position to be in if I could make it,” Ahmad Sarji recalls.

Not that the job was all about power and pull. Once upon a time, the DO was the government’s point man in his district, responsible for putting into action the policies of a young nation back when the administrative machinery was nowhere near its size and reach today.

He explains: “The context then was different. In early 1960s, the momentum of development was so rapid, especially at the district level. We had to do all kinds of articulation and aggregation of interests.”

The DO was, as Ahmad Sarji describes it, all things sundry, especially in the rural area. He was in charge of a host of social and economic initiatives such as infrastructural development, tenant registration, land alienation schemes, organising farming communities and campaigns to promote racial harmony.

It was when he was the DO of Port Dickson that he had one of the highlights of his civil service career. In 1965, the Negri Sembilan government formed a commission of enquiry to investigate the affairs of the Seremban Town Council, and he was given a role.

“I was very happy to be the secretary of this commission, whose chairman was Justice Lee Hun Hoe (later Tan Sri) from Sarawak. I’ve got to know a judge and I was responsible for producing the report. I understand that it was the first report by a commission of enquiry into a local authority,” he says.

Having achieved his goal of becoming a DO earlier than he had envisaged, he was too preoccupied with the tasks at hand to set new targets. “I never thought I could rise far because at that time, there was little time to think about one’s ambitions,” he says. It was up to somebody else to provide Ahmad Sarji with a significant career boost.

At the summit of the civil service

That came in 1973. After a succession of Federal Government postings, Ahmad Sarji was chosen by then Prime Minister Tun Abdul Razak Hussein to be the founding director-general of the Farmers’ Organisation Authority (FOA).

There had been a mushrooming of associations and co-operatives in the agricultural sector, but many of these were ill-organised and not viable.

The FOA’s No.1 mission was to streamline these grassroots institutions. For Ahmad Sarji, it was an opportunity to make good use of the experience from his years in the district offices and in Federal Government, and it was another pivotal turn in his years in the public sector.

He explains: “It was a prized appointment because you were an appointee of the Prime Minister.”

After six years at the FOA, he continued his progress up the ladder with a series of senior positions in high-profile bodies – the Economic Planning Unit, Mara, the Public Services Department and the then Trade and Industry Ministry (as secretary-general).

In February 1990, he was made the Chief Secretary to the Government, the pinnacle of the Malaysian civil service. He has gone way above the DO league.

He says Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad threw many challenges his way, and he is grateful for that. Many government organisations had to be either set up or revamped.

“We call it creating administrative capacity,” adds Ahmad Sarji. Not surprisingly, he says he would not have changed his mind about entering the civil service if he had a second chance.

He says: “The thrill of becoming a civil servant those years was inexplicable. I was very fortunate because I was thrust into positions of leadership and therefore, I did not have to struggle with being a deputy for a long time, which would have made one very impatient.

“It was not so much about the perks of these posts, but the trust. The trust was the most important thing. Every position you hold, you are in command of financial and human resources, and you have this trust placed in you by redoubtable people.”

He is referring to the government leaders who have given him his big breaks. He describes Mohamad Said, the former Negri Sembilan MB, as “the acme of integrity and honesty, a very learned person.” Tun Abdul Razak’s decision to send him to the FOA had a big impact on Ahmad Sarji’s career as well.

“And of course, when I served under Dr Mahathir, an icon, it was an honour and a pleasure. He has a vision for the country. He’s a man with great intellect and he’s politically astute, I must say,” he says.

Clearly, Ahmad Sarji has done enough to be noticed by these men, but he insists that he did not consciously muscle his way to the top by wielding self-belief and ambition.

“I just plodded along. I’ve always regarded every encounter with my bosses as the moment of truth. I must be well-prepared for it. I articulated my views and the most important thing was to be refined. You have to be a refined person in your demeanour, mannerisms, choice of words, body language... And you need the ability to read your boss’s mind. They call it scanning the environment,” he sums up.

“I’ve worked with quite a few arrogant and gregarious people, but I’ve managed to survive.”

A time for other passions

Obviously, to Dr Mahathir, Ahmad Sarji did more than just survive. When the latter had left the civil service, the then Prime Minister suggested that he take over as PNB chairman.

“It was something I had never dreamt of. I was succeeding an icon, Tun Ismail Ali. I stepped into his big shoes,” Ahmad Sarji recalls.

He adds that at the point of retirement from government work, he had a housing loan to settle and was considering offers from one or two friends to continue working.

The PNB appointment changed everything, and he accumulated a wealth of experience as a steward of many companies in various industries.

For him, the biggest difference in being in the corporate sector is the extent of the accountability.

“In the private sector, you have to adjust to achieving targets. In the civil service, before the Government introduced key performance indicators, we were working on quite a different time-frame. But in the private sector, there are quarterly targets. You’ve got to prepare quarterly reports. And then you have half-yearly and annual reports. You’re working to meet targets all the time. In other words, you must always be on top of things,” he points out.

Nevertheless, it wasn’t a problem for him because “I like measurable things.” He also likes plenty of other things.

Thanks largely to his father, a keen sportsman and coach, he has a lifelong passion for sports such as hockey, football, cricket and golf.

Quite naturally, that developed into a commitment to sports administration in cricket and lawn bowls. He has even written a book to put on record his memories of his leadership of the Malaysian and Asian lawn bowls organisations.

History has deep meaning for Ahmad Sarji. He champions the preservation and conservation of heritage structures and sites.

He collects rare books and appreciates vintage cars, and he is chairman of the editorial advisory board for The Encyclopedia of Malaysia series. It’s not surprising therefore that he laments the lack of emphasis on the writing and teaching of history.

And, yes, no personality profile on Ahmad Sarji can be complete without a mention of his idol, the late Tan Sri P. Ramlee. He has co-written five books on the multi-talented performer, and has watched all his movies save three whose copies are lost.

“You cannot explain how somebody becomes a genius. People have tried to do research on what has influenced and shaped him, but the answer is always ‘He’s God’s gift to us.’”

Maybe somebody should try to figure out what is it exactly that makes Ahmad Sarji tick. Given his diverse achievements and interests, the answer must surely be interesting.

Proton has no merger plans

By DANNY YAP
danny@thestar.com.my

KUALA LUMPUR: Proton Holdings Bhd has no plans to merge with other companies at this juncture, according to adviser Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

Dr Mahathir said the national car manufacturer was a profitable company.

It was earlier reported that Proton was working on a deal to make DRB-HICOM Bhd an equity partner, but the deal may have hit a snag as neither party has confirmed their interest.

Dr Mahathir said Proton was now at the restructuring stage.

“After we restructure and when we are more able to assess the value of our assets, maybe then we will think of some simple cooperation with other companies, if they are interested,” he told reporters after the establishment and launch of the First Sovereign Advisory (FSA) company based on Islamic values yesterday.

FSA, a financial adviser firm, is licensed by Bank Negara and the Securities Commission to advise clients on various Islamic financial products provided by its selected partners.

Asked if Proton was still open to foreign companies having a stake in it, Dr Mahathir said the car manufacturer was open to talks with everyone.

“Over the past 25 years Proton has acquired the skills and capacity to design and build cars from A to Z almost. We have something to offer in terms of our cost competitiveness in car manufacturing, compared with places like Europe and Japan, which are four times more expensive,” he noted.

On the entry of foreign car assemblers, Mahathir said the Government should reconsider if the move was really useful.

“We don’t have to comply with what is recommended by the developed countries. We need to protect ourselves. If we open up our market and they don’t open up theirs, obviously we are not going to benefit,” he said.

On FSA, chief executive officer Annuar Shuib said the firm was looking to have more strategic partners to provide more Islamic products and services to satisfy its clients’ requirements.

“We are in talks with several other companies at the moment,” he said.

In conjunction with the launch of FSA, the firm also signed a couple of strategic partnership agreements with two companies for the provision of Islamic products and services.

The two companies are Hong Leong Tokio Marine Takaful Bhd and iFast Capital Sdn Bhd.

Dr M resists entry of more foreign assemblers

KUALA LUMPUR: The Government should re-think allowing foreign carmakers to set up assembly plants in Malaysia as the move may not benefit the country, says Proton adviser Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

"We cannot have access to these countries that want to invest in Malaysia as they imposed a lot of restrictions to the extent that we cannot invest there, but they can invest here."

The Malaysian Investment Development Authority (MIDA) said on Wednesday it was evaluating applications from five foreign carmakers keen to set up assembly plants in Malaysia to assemble cars below and above 1,800cc.

MIDA is expected to decide on the carmakers' entry in the next few months.

The agency said carmakers from India, China, Japan and South Korea had shown keen interest to manufacture hybrid and electric cars. With the revised National Automotive Policy, foreign carmakers can own manufacturing plants that produced luxury vehicles with an engine capacity above 1,800cc and costs more than RM150,000 a unit.

The Malaysian automotive industry is also seeing a surge in foreign interests this year, with two local firms - Naza Nasim Sdn Bhd and DRB-HICOM Bhd - securing production rights to rands such as Peugeot and Potenza.

Former prime minister Dr Mahathir also said the Government should ensure it does not get a raw deal when making deals with foreigners.

"When they don't open up but we open up, obviously we are not going to benefit from the deal," he told reporters after opening the First Sovereign Advisory Sdn Bhd, the first Islamic value-based financial advisory firm.

In a related development, Dr Mahathir said Proton was only keen to work with other companies and has no intention to merge with them as it was now on a sound financial footing.

"Financially Proton is okay," he told a media briefing here Friday.

Proton would be able to evaluate the value of its assets after a restructuring, he added.