Former Malacca chief minister Datuk Seri Wira Mohd Ali Rustam has been tipped to succeed Tun Ahmad Sarji Abdul Hamid as Permodalan Nasional Bhd (PNB) chairman.
Ahmad Sarji has helmed the country's largest fund management company since 1996 and it is learnt his contract expires this year.
"The government may appoint Mohd Ali as recognition for his services in developing and transforming Malacca over the past 13 years into what it is today," a source said.
"Ahmad Sarji is 74 years' old and he wants to make way for a younger person to head the state-owned fund manager," the source added.
When contacted, Mohd Ali, 64, said: "I don't want to comment on speculation."
Sources said Mohd Ali was earlier offered a post in Umno as the party's information chief but he declined.
Mohd Ali's chairmanship will follow a string of appointments of politicians and top civil servants to helm government agencies and commissions.
They included Tan Sri Syed Hamid Albar, who was appointed Land Public Transport Commision chairman, Tan Sri Sidek Hassan as Petronas chairman, Datuk Seri Ng Yen Yen as Tourism Malaysia chairman and, more recently, Datuk Abdul Ghani Othman as Sime Darby Bhd chairman.
Mohd Ali, who was Malacca chief minister for 12 years, lost his Bukit Katil parliamentary seat to Parti Keadilan Rakyat's Angkatan Muda chief Shamsul Iskandar Mohd Akin in the 13th General Election in May by a 5,447 majority vote.
Meanwhile, Ahmad Sarji was chief secretary to the government with more than 35 years' of experience in the public service.
He was selected as "Tokoh Maal Hijrah" for the Islamic year 1420 (1999) and was president of the Commonwealth Association for Public Administration and Management from 1996 to 1998.
He represented PNB as chairman at several companies under the group's stable, of which some are public-listed.
Established in 1978, PNB is the owner of various unit trust schemes, such as Amanah Saham Nasional Bhd, Amanah Saham Nasional and Amanah Saham Bumiputera, as well as the controlling shareholder in companies such as Sime Darby Bhd, Malayan Banking Bhd and SP Setia Bhd.
It managed funds worth more than than RM200 billion as at September 2012.
- BT
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