FT Umno Youth raises Malay concerns on rumoured GLC CEO

Federal Territories Umno Youth Chief Mohamed Nizham Abdullah Hamidi has raised concerns about the speculated appointment of corporate leader Voon Tin Yow as Sime Darby Property's new CEO.

Nizham said even though the company said this was speculation, such an appointment could threaten the Malays' economic standing.

"If Voon's appointment happens, it is very worrying because Sime Darby is a platform to help Malay professionals and traders compete in the challenging business world.

"Voon may not be able to appreciate this struggle, but he is also part of Ecoworld, which is always chasing after profits instead of prioritising the people," he said at a press conference in Kuala Lumpur today.

Last month, rumours emerged that Voon, who is currently the Ecoworld executive director, would be taking over from acting CEO Wan Hashimi AlBakri Wan Ahmad Amin Jaffri.

However, Wan Hashimi said at a press conference on Aug 29 that this was just speculation.

Nizham said appointing Voon would change the make-up of Sime Darby's senior management, which is already 60 percent non-Malay.

“We feel that it is a responsibility to comment on this case publicly as it involves the interests of the public, especially the Malays who are the majority," he said.

Nine out of 15 of Sime Darby Property's corporate leadership are non-Malays.

However, eight out of 10 of its board of directors are bumiputra, chaired by former Bank Negara governor Zeti Akhtar Aziz.

Meanwhile, Nizham also raised a concern about speculation that Voon would be paid RM265,000 a month compared to the RM62,000 monthly salary paid to Wan Hashimi.

It is unclear where this figure emerged.

Blogger A Kadir Jasin, who is also Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad's media advisor, was among those who speculated about Voon's potential payout on social media last month.

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