A+ | A- | Reset
Home arrow The Blogs arrow From Around The Blogs arrow The myth behind the 30% thingy

The myth behind the 30% thingy PDF Print
Posted by admin   
Thursday, 02 July 2009 18:18

By Lee Wee Tak

I applauded the bold move by Najib on the economic reforms. Of course the most telling change is that the 30% bumiputra quota requirement for companies seeking to list on the Bursa Malaysia has been done away.

However, I wonder what you make of this.

".....All Malaysian companies seeking listing would have to offer 50% of their public offering to bumiputra investors, which would work out to 12.5% of the total stake;...."

To me it means the promoters only (i.e. the entrepreneurs seeking to list the companies; usually they develop the business to a size sufficient to qualify for listing) are able to reap the benefits of deregulation. Typical of BN policies as it benefits the privileged minority.

However, for the non-bumi man, woman and tengah-tengah in the street, their chances of succeeding in IPO application is immediate cut down by 50% “officially” as compared to previously, no such limiting of their “official” chances because before this, public offering is public offering.

The 12.5% quoted above assumes the IPO company is offering 25% for public floatation. If, however, the company decide to offer either 40%, 50% or 70% for public, then the bumi quota will be 20%, 25% or 35% respectively.

Read more at: http://wangsamajuformalaysia.blogspot.com/2009/07/myth-behind-30-thingy.html

Comments (13)Add Comment
...
written by slash n burn, July 02, 2009 18:30:31
Honda Malaysia is plain example where 49% equity held by NEP. Strange though, the MD(Japanese) work like a dog while the other COO(NEP)sitting adjacent staring at his laptop all day, occasionally signing toilet memos not to litter!
report abuse
disagree 0
agree 44
...
written by jayenjr, July 02, 2009 19:16:20
I personally don't think that this so-called "de-regulation" will achieve any value added or tangible benefit in the long run. Perhaps if it was introduced in the glory days of the BSKL bull-shit run, or during the glamour days of our "Piratisation" exercises, then, we could have been the beneficiaries of some tangible economic output today.

As it is, the market today is bleeding for too much greed and excess, and I think that the global economy will remain in ICU for at least 2 years....before the next whatever.

But premium listings on BSKL? Don't think that's ever going to happen as it did in the 90s. So, what's the point of offering something that in all likelihood, doesn't really add up to much?

For eg - if I could use this as an analogy:-

Suppose, I were to go back to those deserving students with mountain-high As who failed to get the JPA scholarships, and tell them, "look, I now offer you guys free places in the local uni to do Social Science, make sure you take it, & be grateful", do you think that this is fair compensation to those who truly are deserving & capable, but are offered mediocrity?

Isn't that what Najib/BN is offering us today? The cream of the nation's wealth was long pocketed by the cronies of NEP - from our AP Queen to an ex-ex PM bailing out his son Mirzan using Petronas $$, the best part of it is gone..and will stay gone for a long time to come.

What Najib is offering us to day is just that:- the leftovers with mediocrity as icing.

If he is serious about real NEP re-structuring/wealth distribution efforts, then he should, amongst others, implement the following:-

1. Set aside funds to enable well - deserving students to have places in local uni with scholarship. It only takes about RM300m per annum to ensure that, and yet, the UMNO/BN cadre sees it to waste $$ on PKFZ????

2. Allow more non-Bumi professors, dean and even Vice-Chancellors to take up the relevant positions in our local uni. Not those who obtained their PHd from some obscure, remote part of Siberia. Input from appointees who are chosen based on meritocracy would go a long way to form our next generation of human capital, which is sorely needed cos our best brains keep migrating to S'pore!

3. Start open tenders at all gov'n agencies. But then again, when you have a PM who oversaw the Scorpene transaction, I see little chance of this ever happening.

4. Why the need for Ekutinas? The massive churn out of local unemployable grads is prove that what UMNO/BN tried in the past, didn't work. So why raise public funds to do the same thing again? Isn't that the definition of "stupidity" - doing the same thing again & again but expecting different results?

No sir-ee, I don't see Najib as having the leadership intellect to lead M'sia to the next level. Whatever his linkage with the Mongolian lady/Scorpene etc etc, thus far, the political/economical intellect coming from this man has so far, in my opinion, been Band-Aid type solutions.

We still need a new leader.
report abuse
disagree 0
agree 34
..., Lowly rated comment [Show]
...
written by alpha100, July 02, 2009 20:00:15
Extra for cronies! Dapat Jual! Dapat Jual! Dapat lagi Jual lagi! Untung lah cronies UMNO!
report abuse
disagree 0
agree 14
...
written by talk2stop, July 02, 2009 20:34:07
Don't take investors for fools. There is only one thing common on investors mind. "We are here to make money not to make friends." They don't give a damn about anything else. If Najib's idea is attractive then investors will flood Malaysia shores. For me, Malaysia is not the place to invest at the moment. Far too many sticky issues.
report abuse
disagree 0
agree 14
...
written by aisyalam, July 02, 2009 22:15:12
I don't recall since when u have a so called leader in bolehland. But I knew there were and are plenty of thieves there. Shameless thieves. After looting billions of RM, still can proudly be voted to "loot" more. Majority of M'sians are the most stupid people in the universe! KA..KA..KA..
report abuse
disagree 0
agree 5
...
written by Concerned Malaysian, July 02, 2009 22:33:06
Malaysia need a new leader, new policy fair to all malaysians and a new direction.
any taker? not UMNO again...enough of 50 years you know what.....
report abuse
disagree 0
agree 4
...
written by Daryl, July 02, 2009 22:40:26
Bold move and all that. But, did we addressed the corruption, cronyism, and other irregularities? All Malaysian that gullible and if you just throw something at them they just leap around like a dog happily even though it doesn't do anything at all.

I haven't see a blue print to handle more serious issues like education system, handle the poor Malaysian, corruption, rogue judges, buat kerja civil servant, media like Utusan Melayu that fan racial agendas and lots more. Yet all these quota removal is hail that it is a start of something great without a blue print. I am looking at it this way if you don't have a proper road there is no use to have so many cars because you don't have a way to get to the final destination.
report abuse
disagree 1
agree 3
...
written by Braino, July 02, 2009 23:42:32
FDI drop from 46 billion in 2008(Jan-May) to 4.2 billion this year(same period)! No wonder have to drop the 30% thingy. But I am afraid its a little too late and too unattractive compared with what Cambodia, Vietnam and China are offering!
report abuse
disagree 0
agree 9
...
written by Loh, July 03, 2009 00:48:18
///5. Establishing New Institution
• Ekuiti Nasional Berhad (Ekuinas) to be established with initial capital of RM500 million, eventually to be enlarged to RM10 billion fund.///--Najib

FIC has been in force for the past 35 years, and RM 54 billion shares have been allotted to Malays, and they have on their own chosen to reinvest elsewhere.

The total equity share capital in corporate sector in 1970 was not more than RM 25 billion. It would have costed the state RM 7.5 billion to acquire 30% of the share capital and held in trust for Malays. In fact, if the billion acres of FELDA land were registered with the Registry of companies, that would have yielded RM 3 billion on the account of Malays’ equity capital. The state needed only to fund RM 4.5 billion, from Petronas and these shares would still be available to rural Malays. As it is RM 54 billion have been given to Malays, and the public paid for it having to pay their share prices at a premium, and some rich Malays who had connection with TDM and Rafidah Aziz were laughing to the bank.

Najib now pretends to pay ‘political price to liberalise FIC’, and in the process gets the state to fund RM 10 billion for some objective under NEP which had long been achieved.

The people can be fooled some of the time, and some people all the time; but not all the people all the time. Najib still harbour racist attitude, either to satisfy his racist emotion or as a trump card for political control.

1Malaysia would mean onceMalaysia.
report abuse
disagree 0
agree 2
...
written by Loh, July 03, 2009 00:50:12
The government is still harping on the myth that Malays have not obtained 30% of corporate share capital despite the fact that they, AAB and Najib, promised in December 2006, to reveal within a month the statistics and methodology utilised by EPU, to refute the report produced by ASLI which stated that Malays’ share of corporate equity had far exceeded the 30% target of NEP. Until today, 30 months later, which is 30 times the length of time promised by the PM and DPM, the government has been unable to refute what ASLI’s report has stated that Malays owned more than 30% in the corporate sector versus the NEP target of 30%, then the findings by ASLI had to be correct. The statement by Najib claiming that the 30% target had not been achieved despite FIC rule was false. Also, the extending of 30% requirement to 50% requirement regarding Malays’ ownership is simply racist.

It should be recalled that by NEP objective the target of 30% was set as a threshold, an indication that Malays have achieved the ability to compete freely. NEP would cease to function once Malays have capability, and the question of the economic shares by race would not become an issue since the sense of jealousy by Malays against other communities would have been ameliorated. Indeed Malays are expected to claim that they have arrived at the level where any assistance by the government would be viewed an insult to the community. Malays who care to protect the honour of the race to show that the Malay race does not disappear under Malaysian sun without UMNO. The reality is that NEWMalays like the Mamaks do not consider Malays’ honour their responsibility since the blood running in their veins is decidedly Indian.

It is clear that the government accepted tacitly that the NEP target had been achieved and yet it goes ahead to continue with the race-based policy. The government prefers not to claim the glamour of having succeeded in 39 years for what was scheduled for 20 years, and had in fact achieved within that time frame in 1990 for a specific reason. It is because NEP gives protection for corrupt practices perpetrated by UMNO leaders and it facilitates money politics so that the powers-that-be remain in control within the party, when Malays among the general population have been brainwashed that they would die with UMNO.

The new policy Najib has just announced serves to pass more burdens onto non-Malay Malaysians who are captives to domestic discriminatory policy, and yet the foreigners are allowed to exacerbate the sufferings of non-Malays. Let me explain.

When foreign companies come in and get listed in Malaysia, the total market capitalisation increases. The same amount of equity capital owned by bumiputras would represent a smaller percentage share. Thus, Malaysian non-Malay companies are expected o sell more of the equity shares to Malays at discount to maintain their percentage hold in the market. The NEP target of 30% overall, based on the EPU formula would remain unattainable. So NEP stays, and foreign companies are rewarded by helping UMNO play its domestic political game. Those who plundered the state take their money out of the country. Daim zainuddin funds used in buying banks all over Africa would not show in Malaysian corporate statistics. Meanwhile UMNO leaders continue to claim that rural Malays are poor, and the 30% target has not been reached.

Yes we know the game, but UMNO has the number to pursue non-Islamic policies and yet receive support by Muslims.
report abuse
disagree 0
agree 5
...
written by jayenjr, July 03, 2009 11:27:50
written by Loh, July 03, 2009 00:48:18:-
When foreign companies come in and get listed in Malaysia, the total market capitalisation increases

----------------------------------------------------------------

Dear Loh,

Let me explain to you, why I don't think foreign cos are going to come in by the droves, just because of this so-called liberalisation policy. I will put in point form - simplified, but I am sure you understand the ultimate msg.

1. Tainted judiciary - VK Lingam & Boonsom Boonyamit case. Why would foreigners run the risk of any arbtritation going agst them when they can take their cases to S'pore for fairer assessments?
2. Corrupt & politically impartial civil service - from the P.I.G to the AG to the MACC to the skewed Parliament Speaker - it's all blackened
3. Hypocritical religious bigots hiding behind shades of pseudo-zeal. Remember the married American couple that they harrased cos they thot this couple was committing khalwat?
4. Civil efficiency - it still takes months to get response from Gov'n agencies? You think PEMUDAH has improved the situation? Try to get a refund from The Malaysian Customs - if you've overpaid your taxes - and see how long it takes.
5. Bad reputation. From the report by the US Congress that we are one of the major countries involved in human trafficking to the incident of kicking out Jebel from PKFZ, do you think foreigners want to incur the rick premium of doing business here, not to mention the "premium" payment for corruption?
6. Tainted leadership. Tell me, in which country (at least those ranking as developed and modern), do you have a leader whose personal reputation is so sullied that he is afraid to stand up to public scrutiny?

I don't see Najib dealing with any of this structural issues. He's just applying cosmetics on a mannequin



report abuse
disagree 0
agree 4
...
written by Loh, July 03, 2009 16:43:59
jayenjr,

Yes, it is true that foreign companies would not rush in to list, but in case they do.

My point is if the government still insists in keeping the 30% objective, any incoming investments would work against the achievement of that threshold, and hence against the interests of non-Malays who have now to allocate 50% of the spread to Malays. The change is accompanied with the establishment of Ekuinas; RM 10 billion will now be set aside for Malays, the selected representatives who would own shares so the rural Malays can enjoy vicariously.

The 30% target has long been achieved according to a report released by ASLI in late 2006 which made it to headline news. AAB and Najib declared then that EPU would reveal, within a month from December 2006, the statistics and methodology to prove that the official figure of 18.9% was accurate. The world is still awaiting the results. The UMNO leaders know the truth, and instead of honouring the promise made by Tun Razak that NEP would be implemented for 20 year (until 1990) and the target of Malays’ economic participation was 30% corporate ownership, they chose to do selective liberalisation, feigning that the objective has yet to be achieved.

Najib has now side-stepped the issue of revealing the crucial statistics which stood against unity of the races polarised by NEP. He has further justified it for setting up RM 10 billion to give to selected Malays of his choice. The ghost of 30% would again come back to haunt us. As I said freeing foreign companies to list in Malaysia would make market capitalisation larger, and it will take a larger quantity to account for the infamous 30%.

It is clear that NEP will stay. Even if foreign companies don't list here NEP allows Najib to use RM 10 billion to buy friends.
report abuse
disagree 0
agree 2

Write comment
This content has been locked. You can no longer post any comment.
You must be logged in to a comment. Please register if you do not have an account yet.

busy
 
< Prev   Next >
 

Sponsored Links

World Futures  Moscow's Middle East conference: Should the Muslims depend only on the US to solve the Palestine crisis?

Future Fastforward  A controversial analysis by a controversial analyst, Matthias Chang, the lawyer-writer who unabashedly calls a spade a spade and offers no apology for doing so.

Internet TV 3000+ Channels  Pick your favorite internet TV channels straight to your PC! Yay!

Some Images Hosted With
Thank You ImageShack!
 BLOGGERS AGAINST ISA

Powered and Optimized for:
Malaysia Today by MT-TEAM