‘MAS Can Become Profitable If The Govt Sells Its Stake’

 

(The Sun Daily) – “When a company is government owned, there is a lack of drive to make things better. The mentality is that, if you lose money, the government is there to back them,” Mahathir said.

Malaysia Airlines (MAS) can become profitable if the government sells its stake, former prime minister Tun Mahathir Mohamad said.

“The main reason behind MAS’s losses is because it is government-owned,” he said.

When a company is government owned, there is a lack of drive to make things better. The mentality is that, if you lose money, the government is there to back them,” Mahathir said.

The government owns a golden share in the airline, while Khazanah Nasional Bhd, the government’s investment arm holds a 69.4% majority stake.

Mahathir’s comments came in the wake of a statement by Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Idris Jala that the airline should be sold to save it.

Relating his experiences with Proton, Mahathir said privatisation is good to help keep a company mindful of its profitability.

“My experience with Proton is a clear example. After it was privatised, the new owners were very conscious about profit and loss,” he told reporters during his Hari Raya open house at his residence in Seri Kembangan today.

“They cleaned up the entire management so that it can make profit because it is their own money at stake. But if it is the government’s money at stake, no one cares,” he said, adding that people’s perception of a government-owned company is that it exists to create employment.

“I know because I ran a government company before,” Mahathir said, citing his experience in running a pineapple cannery.

He said a government-owned company’s normal practice may be to request for funds every year, and that is not how businesses work as a business does not pump in new capital every year.

Asked to comment on the government’s move to revoke the permanent residence (PR) status of a Johor resort operator who had allowed a Buddhist group to use a surau for prayers, Mahathir said it was not a harsh action.

“The government has the right to revoke PRs if people do something which is not in line with our national policies,” he said, adding that demolishing the surau may not be necessary.

However, Mahathir said that if the people’s wishes are to demolish the building, the government has to comply with these wishes.

Meanwhile, Mahathir lamented that Umno’s image had become bad due to allegations of corruption within the party.

“The party has also become old and young people do not find it attractive anymore,” he said, urging party leaders to re-examine themselves and introduce changes.

He said among the reasons for this was that Umno had not been listening to the younger people, who ended up supporting the opposition when their voices were not heard.

He added that Umno may also be losing its support because of some existing leaders’ insecurities.

“Talented and capable individuals who were interested to join the party were turned away, and they joined PAS which used to only have religious teachers as members but now have doctors, lawyers and engineers as well,” he added.

Among the 20,000 visitors who visited his open house were Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak and Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin and their wives Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor and Puan Sri Noorainee Abd Rahman.