1MDB is a wholly government-owned company who tries to behave like a 'private company'. The responsible Ministry should be the Finance Ministry - but alas, there seem to be no Ministry representative that sits as a Director - and this is odd. Who chose the Directors of 1MDB - well, it would have been the Prime Minister and the Finance Minister, but in Malaysia, it is the same person now - Najib Tun Razak.
Malaysians' money is government money, and the duty and obligation of handling and dealing this money and assets is given to the government. The Prime Minister and his Cabinet is entrusted with this duty and obligation. So, if there is a failure to carry out this duty and obligation, the blame and responsibility lies with the Prime Minister and the government - the PM or the government cannot simply say that some officer or Director General or Minister is responsible.
Now, Malaysian government has formed a lot government-owned companies, and also owns a percentage of many government-linked companies(GLCs). The Ministry usually responsible is the Ministry of Finance - hence the Minister of Finance. Now, the Minister of Finance is determined by the Prime Minister. Hence, if there are any failings in these 'private' companies - the blame and responsibility is still with the government and the Prime Minister.The Prime Minister cannot shift blame to the Minister of Finance or the Board of Directors or some CEO or some ex-employee.
In a company, the power lies with the owners. They pick and choose the Board of Directors, and it is the Board of Directors who is responsible for the running of the company. It is the Board of Directors that choose the General Manager, what today is called the CEO (Chief Executive Officer). The CEO cannot do anything safe what is approved by the Board of Directors. CEO maybe the one who picks his other Managers and staff - and, in the same way, the blame for a mistake of an employee will lie with the CEO...and therefore with the Board of Directors...and therefore with the owners.
1MDB - well, this is a 100% government owned company, and the responsibility will lie with the Minister of Finance, and the Prime Minister. Naturally, the choice of Directors will be made by the Ministry of Finance or the government.
Now, some is trying to place the blame for the 1MDB failings on some former CEO, an employee - But, why did the Prime Minister or the Minister of Finance or 1MDB Board of Directors inform us about this alleged 'fumble' from the beginning - why wait for the PAC to inform us of this after so long? In any event, as mentioned earlier, this is not right - the responsibility ultimately lies with the Board of Directors, the Minister of Finance, the Prime Minister and the government of Malaysia.
When a police officer does a wrong, the Inspector General of Police takes responsibility...in fact, the government of Malaysia also takes responsibility.
1MDB - the problem is that Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak is also Minister of Finance...
In any private company, it is lame to place the blame of the General Manager or what we now call CEO (Chief Executive Officer) - remembering that it is the Board of Directors and shareholders that are ultimately responsible. Now, for a government-owned company, well, it is the government that is responsible - i.e. the Prime Minister....and we, the people of Malaysia are responsible for we, by our votes, made it possible for Najib Tun Razak, an UMNO member to become the Prime Minister..
At, the end of the day, it is Malaysians fault - we need to be more careful on who we choose in the next elections. We also must learn from our mistakes - our elected reps needs not only to be continuously monitored, but also instructed and directed as to what they should do and not do...
How much profits did 1MDB make for Malaysia? RM....
Is it time for us to have laws governing government-owned companies and GLCs? YES, it is...
Not fair to single out Najib for 1MDB's weaknesses, says Razali
UPDATED 7.16PM | The deputy minister points out that the PM has to attend to other matters too." data-title="Not fair to single out Najib for 1MDB's weaknesses, says Razali" data-url="http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/336920">
Prime Minister Najib
Abdul Razak should not be blamed for 1MDB's weaknesses as he was not
involved in the operation of the state-owned fund, said an Umno leader.
It is not fair for the critics to single out Najib, said Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Razali Ibrahim.
"Najib is involved in various (other) matters, including those related to Petronas," he said at the Parliament lobby today.
He
was asked about concerns being raised over the Public Accounts
Committee's (PAC) silence on Najib in its 1MDB report tabled in the
Dewan Rakyat today.
"It is unfair if they (critics) made this –
not naming (Najib in PAC's report) – an issue," he said, adding that
1MDB's operation lies in its management team.
The PAC's report
only held former 1MDB's boss Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi responsible for
the weaknesses and constraints of the company.
The PAC's report
on 1MDB submitted to Parliament today had found that Shahrol should be
held responsible for 1MDB's constraints and weaknesses.
It noted that 1MDB management had gone against its board of directors' decision.
The PAC also claimed that 1MDB had relied on debts that were not viable.
Following the release of the findings of the report, 1MDB board of directors offered to resign today.
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