The right man for the right job at the right time

In a bold move, Human Resources Minister M Saravanan has decided that the new CEO for the Human Resource Development Fund (HRDF) must be a technocrat well versed in the art of business and from outside his party, MIC, and one with a background in information technology.

The appointment comes with some criticism not because of his experience or his corporate background but rather because the new CEO, Shahul Hameed Dawood (above), had once organised an event where the controversial preacher Dr Zakir Naik had been invited.

And one can guess that the critics will criticise Shahul’s appointment simply because one will be deemed anti-this and that when one is associated with Zakir.

I took the opportunity to do some research and delve a little into Shahul’s past, his background, his family, to see if Shahul should be condemned simply because of his brief association with Zakir.

Shahul, 45, was born to the late Shaik Dawood and Jamaliya. He is the great-grandson of well known religious leader RE Mohamad Kassim who had served on the state council of Selangor in the 1920s. Mohamad was the president of the Selangor Indian Merchants Association and a JP for Selangor and a respected community leader who was the founder of a charity then known as the Kassim Charitable Dispensary.

Shahul’s grand uncle was a legend among both the Malay and the Indian communities of his time. SOK Ubaidullah was a pillar of both communities and well known as a businessman of impeccable repute. Ubaidullah was a prominent member of MIC and just before his passing was a lifetime member of both MIC and Umno, probably one of the very few, if not the only one, to be accorded such a status.

Shahul is also the grand nephew of AS Dawood, a prominent businessman from Negri Sembilan.

Shahul comes from a family which has strong roots in business and he himself has inherited a penchant for entrepreneurship. He is well on his way to making his own name in the Malay and Indian business communities. He speaks Tamil fluently in addition to Bahasa Malaysia and English. He is frequently involved in charitable activism, having been the secretary-general of the Indian Muslim Chamber of Commerce (Mimcoin).

He started his working career in the education sector by rising through the ranks at Informatics and was a key figure in JobsDB, a leading regional online recruitment agency. He then went on to form My Events International, an event management company with a presence in eight countries around the world.

He is married to Sabrina Siamala Vadivelu, who is born to Hindu parents and who has two siblings who are still proud practising Hindus. Shahul has an easy demeanour and this has served him well. He gets along with people of different walks of life from all races and this is a testament in his multi-racial multi-religious family links and the makeup of his company.

Kudos to Saravanan for going out of his party to pick the CEO of HRDF. Shahul’s selection is based on his experience and understanding of the industry and clearly on merit.

There must be very little to be critical about in this selection. 

But it must be pointed out that the selection of a CEO for HRDF is not one made based on race or religion, but one that needs to be made with ensuring that the new CEO is one who is able to steer HRDF in these trying times where millions of Malaysians will be looking for jobs, and the government to prepare for a post-Covid19 scenario where Malaysians have to be trained for new skills that are future-ready.

There is little time to play politics and even less time to make decisions based on raging emotion. - Mkini