Anwar to push for a more transparent Petronas

Anwar to push for a more transparent Petronas
21 May, 2008

(The Edge) - While acknowledging that Petronas was one of the better run oil companies in the region, de facto opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said that he would push for a more transparent national oil corporation.

He said at the moment Petronas only reports to the prime minister and because of that, there was an issue of transparency.

“Petronas reports to only one person — the prime minister. They don’t report to the Treasury or the Cabinet,” he said.

Fielding a question on how the opposition would deal with the rising cost of fuel, he said that prices could be reduced to send a clear signal that the government is conscious of the hardship felt by the people.

“It is the humane side that any country must show,” he told an audience of investors, merchant banks, fund managers and business leaders during a luncheon talk organised by CLSA here yesterday.

On the top three priorities for the opposition should they come into power, Anwar said that firstly, it would be the dismantling of the policies advocated by the New Economic Policy (NEP) and replacing it with the Malaysian Economic Agenda (MEA), which promotes transparent processes and competitive bidding.

Secondly, Anwar said that they would focus on Malaysia regaining investor confidence and attracting foreign direct investment (FDI).

“The whole approach must be different. There must be a clear, transparent regulatory framework to provide all possible incentives to ensure Malaysia is competitive in attracting FDI,” he said.

The third priority for the opposition would be to channel more efforts in improving and enhancing Malaysia’s human capital and education system.

He said that the University of Singapore (which can trace its origins from University of Malaya) was among the top three in Asia while University of Malaya was among the top 200.

Anwar said that in the 1960s, his concern was on the insecurity of the Malays. But now, he was confident that the Malays were well equipped to compete. He said that to ensure Malaysia was successful, there cannot be double standards to discriminate against the non-Malays.