KOTA KINABALU, Nov 9 — The Sabah government’s patience is wearing thin towards the more than 90 per cent of its 200-over government-linked companies (GLCs) as state Finance Minister Datuk Seri Masidi Manjun issued another reminder for them to shape up or ship out.
Masidi said that the government has had to pump in funds to pay the salaries of its GLCs yet the investment in many were not paying off.
“If they don’t want to lose their jobs, then they have to perform well. We are a government, not a charitable organisation,” said Masidi who declined to name the non-performing GLCs.
“You were set up to make money to pay for your salaries. In the end, if you are not making money, we have to pay for your salaries, but we get nothing in return. This is not the way,” he said.
Masidi said the state government had issued an ultimatum before, and it was considering setting a deadline, but the GLCs themselves should be responsible enough to know what they should do.
“We have given a lot of opportunities to them to improve themselves but there is a limit to the charitable nature of the government. Suffice to say, we could have avoided a lot of wastage.
“I am not saying we should penalise those who fail. They have a lot of time to try. If they still fail, only two things can happen: We change them or we close the company,” he said when launching a new financial superapp, Yono, developed by Sabah Credit Corporation (SCC).
Masidi said that SCC was among the GLCs that had consistently performed well and paid dividends to the state government.
He said there were a few key aspects to a successful GLC, which included sound financial management, the principle of accountability and good corporate government, and finally, avoiding competition with other GLCs.
He also said that the issue was not the politicians who were appointed to the GLCs board of directors.
“We have to accept the fact that there are politicians who have special expertise and can contribute to the growth of our GLCs. It is not about whether they are politicians but whether they are courageous enough to adapt to the work culture within that GLC.
“Even a non-politician is also susceptible to these weaknesses,” he said.
Last month, Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor said there were more than 200 state GLCs and statutory bodies in Sabah but only 10 have been paying dividends to the state government.
The few who were profitable provided RM138.7 million in dividends and contributions to the state about 8.8 per cent lower than previous years.
He said that during his tenure as the chief minister, he was giving them the ultimatum of paying at least RM1 million every year.
