Datuk Ibrahim Ahmad Badawi: “We want to work with MAS.”

by weechookeong

Datuk Ibrahim bin Ahmad Badawi: “We want to work with MAS”.

On 26-10-2012 Datuk Hj Ibrahim bin Hj Ahmad Badawi, the brother of the former PM (YB Tun Abdullah Badawi) and also the Executive Chairman and majority shareholder of Brahim’s Holding Bhd (Brahim’s Holding) was quoted by the Star to have said: “We want to work with MAS.” For the full Star report read in HERE.

Brahim’s Holding has substantial interest in LSG Skychef Brahim’s Sdn Bhd (LSG Skychef Brahim), formerly known as MAS Catering Sdn Bhd (MAS Catering).

In March 2003 BinaFikir Sdn Bhd, was commissioned to make MAS an asset light airline. BinaFikir coined the name for the project WAU (Widespread Assets Un-bundling). BinaFikir was incorporated in January 2003. It was by chance that En Azman Mokhtar as he then was and En Mohamed Rashdan Yusof, the former MAS Deputy CEO during the infamous MAS-AirAsia share swap,  were the two key figures in BinaFikir. Since its incorporation, BinaFikir was the talked about local consultancy firm in Malaysia and it was awarded with many projects for consultancy work from many GLCs and other government related companies. It continued to fly very high until 2008 when it was sold to Maybank Bhd for RM8 million. BinaFikir was definitely a very viable consultancy firm then.

It was after WAU that MAS entered into a lop sided catering contract with the then MAS Catering, which is now known as LSG Skychef Brahim’s, for 25 years with a total value ofRM6.25 billion. It cost MAS a whooping RM250 million a year!

At the material time, MAS sold 70% of its equity in MAS Catering to Gubahan Saujana Sdn Bhd, which was controlled by Datuk Ibrahim bin Hj Ahmad Badawi. Well, these two deals were sealed almost at the same time.  At that material time, Tan Sri Md Nor Yusuf, who is now the Chairman of MAS, was the MD of MAS. YB Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yacop was the then very powerful Minister of Finance II.

Yours truly believes that many corporate figures throughout the world will never say “NO” to such a lucrative lope sided catering contract with MAS worth RM6.25 billion. Just imagine a stick of satay cost MAS RM3.20! How about the other items?

Yours truly heard that MAS would like to renegotiate the lope sided 25 years catering contract. So far there was no official announcement about the renegotiation of the said lope sided catering contract. If the top management of MAS really wants to turn around, this had to be one of the issues that it had to tackle otherwise it will be an uphill task.

Yours truly has called for the said catering contract to be terminated in HERE.

For background stories regarding LSG Sky Chef Brahim’s Sdn Bhd, in HERE & HERE.