Finance Minister says only qualified MPs appointed heads of GLCs, govt agencies

Only qualified MPs were appointed to helm companies under the Minister of Finance (Incorporated) and other government-linked companies (GLC), said Finance minister Tengku Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz.

He said the appointments of the lawmakers as members of boards of directors (BOD) or chairpersons were made based on their qualifications, experience, and expertise.

To join the BOD of the Minister of Finance (Incorporated), Tengku Zafrul (photo, above) said a candidate would have to be considered by the nomination and remuneration committee as well as members of the BOD themselves.

Once approved, the Securities Commission would then assess the candidate before their name would be presented to Bursa Malaysia for the announcement.

For companies not listed on Bursa Malaysia, the nomination of an individual for the chairperson or a BOD member would only have to go through the nomination and remuneration committee and the BOD.

Besides that, in accordance with the Company Act 2016, Tengku Zafrul said the candidates for companies under the Minister of Finance (Incorporated) would be vetted by various agencies such as the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission, Malaysia Insolvency Department, and the Federal Court Chief Registrar's Office before they were appointed.

For the appointment of the chairperson and BOD member for GLCs, he said the Green Book on Enhancing Board Effectiveness had outlined several criteria to appoint individuals who are qualified.

On the appointment of politicians to replace corporate figures on various BOD, Tengku Zafril said they were not uncommon cases.

"It has been a practice since the previous government," he said.

He added that the appointment of politicians as non-executive chairpersons was so that there would be a limitation of power (pembatasan kuasa) between the BOD and the management in accordance with the Malaysian Code of Corporate Governance 2017 and as a check and balance mechanism.

"In conclusion, the appointments of BOD members in the companies under the Minister of Finance (Incorporated) were not merely filling the positions.

"But rather, the appointments were matched based on the needs of the companies while taking into consideration the individual's background and capability.

"Therefore, only qualified MPs or those fulfilling the proper criteria would be appointed."

Zafrul said this in a written parliamentary reply to Anwar Ibrahim (Harapan-Port Dickson) who asked him on the policy of the appointments of MPs into GLCs and the relevance (kewajaran) of replacing professionals with them.

Since Perikatan Nasional came into power, numerous MPs were appointed as heads of GLCs and government agencies.

Most of the positions were filled by technocrats in the past. -Mkini