YOURSAY ‘MAS to buy AirAsia? It’s more likely the other way around.’

 

MAS should buy AirAsia, not merge

Domcr2001: There is no logic at all. A losing and inefficient airline buying over a profitable and highly efficient airline using taxpayers’ money? What’s next?

 

The new group will be turned into a losing concern again if there is hardly any change in MAS. A total restructuring of MAS (Malaysia Airlines) is needed; only the best people must be allowed to run the company.

 

Letting a new private entity take over may be a good alternative. Don't just use taxpayers’ money to subsidise an inefficient losing concern. Malaysia cannot afford to do it anymore.

 

Not Smart: Former MAS managing director Abdul Aziz Abdul Rahman, your suggestion is similar to the case of “giving a monkey a beautiful flower".

 

Oh Ya?: Even in its dying bed, the ‘ketuanan’ mentality still prevails. Only in Bolehland men like Abdul Aziz could have such outrageous and senseless thinking.

 

The ailing MAS would have closed shop long time ago if not bailed out with taxpayers' money, which could easily top more than RM10 billion.

 

And how could it on its own has the financial muscle to buy AirAsia, and for that matter any other profitable and successful carriers, without burning more taxpayers' money?

 

Even it managed to buy AirAsia, so what? It still needs to be managed. It still has to compete. Above all, it still has to be run as a commercial enterprise with profitability as the only goal and not as a GLC (government-linked company) and be a cash cow for the cronies.

 

Anonymous_1391570393: Instead, MAS should be sold to AirAsia for a token RM1. Forget about being ‘flag carrier’ as it will only mean wasting the rakyat's money.

 

Anonymous_3e86: Buy AirAsia? It’s more likely the other way around.

 

Abdul Aziz did a good job while in MAS but today MAS is in no position to buy over AirAsia.

 

With BN cronies still holding to one-sided contracts, AirAsia will go the way of MAS should MAS buy over AirAsia.

 

Retnam: Thinking out of the box, Abdul Aziz may just be right.

 

Ask anyone who was working in MAS in those days when he was MD, they have only admiration for his strict and no-nonsense management style. There was no scandal during his time.

The malaise began after PM Dr Mahathir Mohamad let crony Tajudin Ramli took over and bled the company.

 

Anticonmen: During Abdul Aziz’ time, for a number of years, MAS sometimes showed profit because the government subsidised the airline heavily although in actual fact, it was loss-making due to poor management.

 

During Idris Jala's so-called turnaround, what he did was to simply sell assets such as the MAS building to a third party and transfer the planes to a government ‘Special Purpose Vehicle’ (additional burden on taxpayers) resulting in no depreciation and maintenance costs for these assets in their accounts plus recognising a capital gain on disposal of assets and forced a VSS (voluntary separation scheme) on employees to reduce labour cost, thus showing some profit in the accounts.

 

Another massive loan (akin to a bailout) was given by taxpayers and a shareholder rights issue was undertaken to recapitalise. Even with these reduced costs and additional injected funds, MAS made heavy losses subsequently. So how?

 

CucuMalaysia: A failed company taking over a successful one? It's like a man drowning in a whirlpool asking for help when he knows very well that whoever jumps in will surely die with him.

 

This ‘ketuanan’ mentality wants everything handed to them on a silver platter. No need to work hard from scratch. Just acquire successful entities.

 

How many once successful companies had been 'swallowed' under the NEP and had totally disappeared from the Malaysian economy? Nothing is easier than this approach.

 

SSDhaliwal: Why must an ailing airline be made to lead a successful and prosperous airline?

 

The same analogy can be derived from people suffering from contagious diseases - if one has a virus, you quarantine yourself so that you do not infect others.

 

In the same context, MAS must overhaul its entire management of the airline, including discarding crony contracts and government interference.

 

Otherwise, it will take AirAsia down too as the cronies will spread their disease to it as well.

 

A.A.: I must admit that I don't have any talent for doing business and I have very little knowledge of economics.

 

Even so, when I saw the statement ‘MAS should buy AirAsia’ in the headline of the news report, I thought that whoever said this must be a politician with a poor business sense.

 

As I read the article, I was initially surprised that an ex-managing director of MAS was the one making such a statement.

 

However, when I reflected a bit more on it, I thought that perhaps I should not be surprised after all - this should explain why MAS had been losing money in recent years.

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