|
Malaysia’s Mahathir Slams Developed Nations
by Kazi Mahmood for IslamOnline
JAKARTA (IslamOnline) - Prime Minister of Malaysia Mahathir Mohamad yesterday lashed out at critics saying they are looking for proof indicating his country is a backward nation. He also slammed some developing countries for their non-transparent conduct during the Asian crisis of 1997.
Mohamad said critics allege Malaysia has poor corporate governance and that Malaysians lack the competence to run companies, know nothing about management and are crooks with corrupt mentalities.
He dismissed a report that classifies Malaysia as 36th in Transparency International rankings, a list of the most corrupt nations worldwide.
In Mahathir’s eyes, critics are always trying to sensationalize these issues and find proof that Malaysia is a country of crooks.
However, Mahathir argued that there are crooks and corruption worldwide. Defending his country’s standards, he said if a study were conducted, one could find worse standards of corporate governance in certain developed countries.
Malaysia’s opposition blames the lack of corporate governance and professionalism for the financial collapse of the some major corporations during the 1997 financial crisis. They also argued that such companies, which were publicly listed, were badly managed.
They also directed criticism at Mahathir’s regime saying his cronies were bailed out from failures during the crisis, an exercise that proved the lack of corporate governance and the need for political intervention in the business world.
Lashing out at developing countries and taunting the opposition, Mahathir said criticism should instead be directed at countries and currency traders who were not transparent at all in their conduct, while the Asian region was sinking in gloom.
Mahathir’s attacks against claims of corruption and ineptitude came as a result of a disclosed deal between two Malaysian heavyweight corporations, the Untied Engineers Malaysia (UEM) and the Renong. He was talking at a press conference on deal between the two.
Sentiment on the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange was affected last week when UEM extended the deadline to Renong executive chairman Tan Sri Halim Saad for the payment of the put option by 15 months for a buyback share agreement.
Mahathir reasoned that for a country that had experienced a period of recession some weaknesses in corporate governance would emerge, largely due to the threats imposed on companies during the bad period.
If the United States were to go through a similar experience, poor corporate governance would also be seen, he said.
"During the good times, that kind of management is alright, but during the bad times, things will always surface which may not sound right.
"Nobody makes any comment when the companies are doing well, but now [due to the economic slowdown] everybody seems to know which is good and bad governance."
He reminded critics that Malaysia had gone through a recession caused by other people, like currency traders who practiced no corporate governance at all. His comments suggested that these traders were not transparent and had a hidden agenda.
"We don't know what they are doing and so the criticisms [on corporate governance] should be directed at them [instead]."
|
