Raja Petra Kamarudin <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
By EILEEN NG
Associated Press Writer
Three senior executives of Malaysia's national carmaker, Proton Holdings Bhd., have resigned in the wake of the recent ouster of the company chief executive by the government, an official said Monday.
The head of group finance, Tan Seng Lee, head of internal audit, Colin Low, and head of public relations, Fauziyah Abu Hassan, left the company last week, the official told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.
The three officials' departures are believed to be related to last month's removal of chief executive Mahaleel Ariff, and could presage a broad revamp in the publicly listed company, the official said, declining to elaborate.
It was not clear if the three officials were forced to leave by the government because they were seen to be close to Mahaleel, or whether they left in protest against his removal.
Mahaleel's exit followed a series of disagreements between him and the government over Proton's future strategies.
Mahaleel opposed selling a significant equity stake in the company to a foreign company and letting it assume a management role, something that has been talked about since the government started talks with German carmaker Volkswagen AG.
The issue has also caused friction between the government of Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and his predecessor, Mahathir Mohamad, who is now Proton's adviser.
Mahathir, who started Proton in 1983 as an assertion of Malaysia's self-reliance in heavy industry, also strongly opposes selling Proton or loosening the state protection it enjoys.
The Edge business weekly reported earlier this month that Volkswagen has proposed buying a 51 percent stake in Proton. It said South Korea's Hyundai Motor Co. is also keen in a tie-up in car assembly and platforms, which Hyundai denied Monday.
"There are no talks. Currently, nothing is going on," a Hyundai spokesman in South Korea said.
The government's investment arm Khazanah Nasional Bhd., which owns 42.7 percent stake in Proton, has, however, confirmed negotiations were being held on Proton's "proposed alliance" with Volkswagen. But it said there were no plans "at this point" to divest all or part of its stake.
Selling to Volkswagen, and possibly surrendering management control, will be a blow to Malaysian pride. However, analysts say such a move would be a huge boost for Proton as it strives to wean itself off government protection and become globally competitive.
Proton, whose biggest shortcoming remains its quality, has seen its domestic market share shrink from 57 percent in 1993 to about 30 percent in June amid intense foreign competition, as import tariffs are being gradually torn down under a regional free trade pact.
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Posted by Raja Petra Kamarudin to MT-news at 8/09/2005 09:07:00 AM
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