Article from Business Times Malaysia (25th July) :
"MALAYSIA Airlines' new management team says it is going through the books and reviewing contracts awarded and various decisions made by the company's previous management.
If any wrongdoing is uncovered and there are grounds, the airline will seek legal recourse, said group managing director Datuk Md Nor Md Yusof, who is also the only one among the six members of the board with executive powers.
The audit is part of the implementation process for a comprehensive programme to return the company to profitability, he said at Malaysia Airlines' annual general meeting in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.
The company has reported losses for the last five financial years.
It was RM1.33 billion in the red for the year ended March 31 2001, its single biggest after-tax loss since being listed on the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange on December 16 1985.
Non-executive chairman Tan Sri Azizan Zainul Abidin had said at a press conference earlier that an audit of contracts awarded previously is under way.
"If it is obvious that there had been criminal activity, the process of law will take place," he said.
Azizan added that the exercise is aimed at determining if Malaysia Airlines is paying for some services more than it should, but declined to say whether a deadline has been set for its completion.
Asked if the company's vendor system will be abolished, he said all aspects of business operations will be scrutinised, and any decision made will be for the benefit of the airline.
The vendor system was introduced in 1996 to encourage retiring employees and other individuals to enter business by providing various services to the company.
Since its launch, 23 individuals have reportedly done business worth RM700 million with Malaysia Airlines.
Azizan, like Md Nor, was appointed to the airline's board in the middle of February after the Government bought over Naluri Bhd's 29.09 per cent stake for RM1.8 billion.
The exit of Naluri as controlling shareholder also saw a slew of resignations from the airline's board.
In its latest annual report, Malaysia Airlines said eight directors resigned during the last financial year.
They are Tan Sri Tajudin Ramli, Datuk Sulaiman Sujak, Datuk Wan Malek Ibrahim, Tan Sri Othman Mohd Rijal, Muhd Syaippudin Abdullah, Yong Ming Sang, Wan Aishah Wan Hamid and Tan Sri Khalil Jamalul."
I guess it's payback time.Let the games begin!
PILOST