8 April 2015
Aviation analysts said someone “independent”, who has the collective interests of all stakeholders in mind, should head the proposed Malaysian Aviation Commission.
“The executive chairman has to be someone independent who can act accordingly to take care of all stakeholders of the industry,” an aviation analyst from a local investment bank told The Edge Financial Daily yesterday on news that aviation veteran Tan Sri Bashir Ahmad Abdul Majib was tipped to helm the commission.
Quoting sources, The Edge Financial Daily reported yesterday that Bashir may be the first executive chairman of the proposed Malaysian Aviation Commission, which will become a reality once the Malaysian Aviation Commission Bill 2015, tabled for first reading on the same day, is passed into law.
Bashir is currently adviser to Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) and recently was appointed chairman of the Corporate Development Centre, which is tasked to provide avenues and opportunities for the outplacement and reskilling of Malaysian Airline System Bhd (MAS) staff not transitioning to Malaysia Airlines Bhd (NewCo) under Khazanah Nasional Bhd’s restructuring of MAS.
“The executive chairman should not be someone from MAHB. If Bashir is appointed as the executive chairman, I think MAHB will have a ‘bigger’ voice in the commission,” opined another aviation analyst.
He said people would expect Bashir to “side” with MAHB due to his connection – and past experience – with the company. Bashir was the managing director of MAHB for 11 years before stepping down in June last year.
Add to the mix is the less-than-warm relationship between AirAsia Bhd and MAHB, a result of previous disagreements on several issues.
Should Bashir head the commission, there might be more issues between the two companies in the future, warned the analyst.
Bashir and AirAsia group chief executive officer Tan Sri Tony Fernandes had clashed publicly on many issues in the past. Some recent ones include the increase of airport tax in 2011, the relocation of AirAsia group’s operation from the old low-cost carrier terminal (LCCT) to klia2 last year, the use of aerobridges in the new low-cost carrier terminal, and the delays in the opening of klia2.
While the first analyst prefers a candidate from the aviation industry, the second favours someone from outside the industry, like from the ministry of transport, whom he feels will be more independent.
Neither, however, has any suggestion as to who is the best choice to head the commission, the idea for which was first mooted during the unveiling of Khazanah’s RM6 billion 12-point recovery plan in August last year for the ailing MAS, which has since been privatised. – The Edge Financial Daily, April 8, 2015.
Original Source: www.themalaysianinsider.com
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