May 22 2025, 07:37 AM, updated 7 months ago
The truth about Sabah GLCs: Most exist for politicians and their families, forum told
Published on: Wednesday, May 21, 2025
By: David Thien
Kota Kinabalu: Many GLCs continue to exist in Sabah despite losing millions of ringgit year after year because they take care of certain politicians and their families, a forum on good governance was told.
Former Sabah Law Society President Datuk Roger Chin told the Sabah Action Body Advocating Rights (Sabar) Town Hall session:
“Let’s not beat around the bush. Let’s not hide the facts. We have directors who are all politically connected. We have chairmen who are politically connected.
“The chairperson has got very little power, the board of directors run the show in most. But in Sabah, the chairmanship is the biggest position. This is reality.
“How is it that non-performing GLCs are still there year after year, and worse these people are still there making full use of their entitlements despite the huge losses.”
For the record, Sabah has some 200 GLCs and most are underperforming in relation to their assets.
For instance, although Sawit Kinabalu has nearly 200,000 hectares under oil palm, the returns to the state for decades has been said to be not what it should be due to “internal leakages”.
Another is Sedco and Khazanah Sabah, both of which recently saw the appointment of new chairmen by the State Government in the hope of turning things around.
Cement Industries Sabah, one of Sedco’s subsidiaries, for instance, have been registering losses or only meagre profits also for decades despite the countless construction projects taking place throughout the state.
“That’s terrible. In any company that is not performing, it should be closed down. But in our GLC ecosystem, the reality is that the full perks are still exploited.”
Roger said closing down these loss-making GLCs and their Anak Syarikat (subsidiaries) is also easier said than done.
He questioned why the directors of these non-performing GLCs are allowed to enjoy their perks such as staying in top hotels and flying Business Class when their companies are losing millions of tax payers’ monies.
“They pick the highest limit or limitless perk entitlements when the company is losing funds.”
He said this also happens in non-profit agencies of the State Government. They maximise their perk entitlements although it is a non-profit entity.”
He said the many consultants that these GLCs hire to give them beautiful plans often end up gathering dust.
He said at the change of every government, there would be a change of personnel and U-turns in policy plans. Investors would be told they could do such and such but when a change of government happened, there would be cancellation of the previously approved plans.
He said by right what had been decided and planned should be allowed to continue even though there is a change in administration, what should be rightly done is to improve on what was planned and implemented.
He said good governance is more than just GLCs.
“We should have a Procurement Act. Investors in many countries around the world would ask: ‘Do you have a Procurement Act’? Transparency is important. “Good governance is important in politics as well. You must have laws like the Political Funding Act.
“When billions or millions of ringgit are involved, it is hard to believe that there is no quid pro quo. “When it becomes quid pro quo, it becomes corruption. But, of course, they will never tell you that. “They will tell you it is political funding,” he said at the Kota Kinabalu Wetlands Ramsar Site meeting hall.
Chin said the proposed Political Funding Act is an appropriate law to force good governance ethics in political practice on those in public office leadership roles.
Source: https://www.dailyexpress.com.my/news/258881...ies-forum-told/
The truth about Sabah GLCs: Most exist for, politicians and their families, forum to
Quote
0.0210sec
0.94
5 queries
GZIP Disabled