The Malaysian Insight

RM85,000 a month, or four times Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s basic salary. That is Malaysian Aviation Commission (Mavcom) chairman Abdullah Ahmad’s monthly pay. 

Abdullah isn’t alone in drawing that much money. Other commission chiefs get their fair share of wages and perks. Of course, those in government-linked companies (GLCs) get even more.

This was only revealed after the change of government on May 9. But it has been going on for far too long, especially in government agencies and companies that are not in competitive fields.

In Mavcom’s case, the salaries are fully funded by the travelling public from now on as they are  charged RM1 per trip out of any commercial Malaysian airports. 

For that, Mavcom’s role is to manage and run the commercial aviation sector in Malaysia. Thus far, the impact has been negligible apart from taking RM1 from each passenger for an estimated annual total of RM35 million.

That is one of their key performance indicators. Money netted, work done. And that has been the case since Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi took over from Dr Mahathir in 2003. 

Nothing wrong with that. Wages that commensurate with performance. But it is an issue when these high salaries are for regulators and state-owned companies that have a monopoly in Malaysia.

Is there a reason why the Mavcom chairman gets that much money? Or for that matter any other commissions such as the recently-disbanded Land Transport Commission? Shouldn’t their salary structure be as transparent as the Cabinet Ministers? After all, it is public funds.

And for the GLCs, should their top managers and executives get high salaries and some even close to global pay scales when their business is just in Malaysia? Is their business so competitive that they need to be paid so much?

For example, how much does the Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB) chap get? It is a monopoly after all, isn’t it? How about the Malaysian Airlines Bhd top man? Two expatriates took the job that must cost a pretty penny. Does the new chief executive get as much or will it be based on his achievement of getting the flag carrier back in black and ready for listing?

Can we know the salaries and perks of the top management beyond what is listed in the annual report? Does it capture the entire salary package? 

No one begrudges a person his salary. Not if that person is a risk taker. But thus far in Malaysia, very few of the top executives in GLCs or agencies are risk takers. Most are just managers who run companies in the local market and are guaranteed good returns.

Reward the risk taker especially those who venture abroad and make a success of it. Not the bean counter who is just standing on the shoulders of giants who came before and blazed the trail. 

The Mavcom chap is not worth RM85,000 a month. Nor are his 58 employees worth keeping at RM25 million a year, to judge by the results since they started in 2016. Fortunately, the Mahathir government is reviewing the salaries of all these top managers in GLCs, statutory bodies and agencies.

Let’s have realistic salaries and reward those who do better than what they are hired to do. Keep costs low, and let people keep more money in their purses. – May 31, 2018.