ON March 23, a slick music video was released with 14 heads of government-linked companies and staff singing Hebat Negaraku.

Barisan Nasional’s slogan happens to be Hebatkan Negaraku. The video intent was to promote Najib Razak and BN before GE14.

It was reported the position of the GLC heads in the video is being reviewed by the new government and it is likely that there will be many changes at the top. With many of them reportedly paid obscene salaries, they need to go quickly.

The making of the video raised many eyebrows. Did Najib make these CEOs walk the plank? Or were they trying to get Simon Cowell’s attention on Britain Got Talent in case things go wrong in their career?

They didn’t get the golden buzzer with their mediocre performance. What they got were brickbats and ridicule from the public.

The first corporate figure to walk the plank was Supermax Corp Bhd group managing director Stanley Thai. On April 14, he grovelled an apology for getting involved in campaigning for the opposition in GE13.

Extending an apology to the former prime minister at a press conference, Thai said he was influenced by the opposition’s propaganda in the previous general election, and realised that it was wrong for him as a businessman to be involved in politics.

Thai raised a good question – should businessmen involve themselves in politics. Business and politics are intertwined since the day these two words came to know each other.

It is a well-known fact that businessmen take sides. Some do it discretely and butter both sides. Even Robert Kuok admits he has donated to political parties in the past.

Thai made the wrong call, as the opposition parties he betrayed, won and formed the government. Perhaps it’s time for Thai to give up his gloves in politics?

Another famous public figure made to walk the plank was Tony Fernandes of AirAsia. A photo showing Fernandes with Najib on board an AirAsia plane was widely circulated during the election campaign.

That plane was painted in the blue of Najib’s BN coalition. Fernandes even changed the uniforms of AirAsia flight attendants from red to blue during a trip.

His act was seen as a betrayal of Malaysians who fought against all odds to get rid of a corrupt and callous regime.

Social media users asked why would a man who had won all of the awards on the planet for the world’s best low-cost airline succumb to a man without an ounce of moral value left in him.

Fernandes later released a video to defend his actions but his pained explanations made it worse. Malaysians could not believe a respected figure who dabbled in Formula 1, owned a great English football club, and won many international accolades, would bow down easily to Najib.

It only goes to show that even today no Malaysian company can stand on its own without the support of the government. Not even Petronas, a Fortune 500 company has been able to say to the government, “go fly kite”.

The AirAsia boss’ problems with government overreach are not over. Recently, it was reported that Mavcom rejected AirAsia’s application for additional routes.

Why would Mavcom, a regulator interfere in business? It’s not its call. In response to criticism from the public, Mavcom  said it looks to facilitate orderly growth, competition and consumer choice over the long term and the prevention of consumer inconvenience in the allocation of air traffic rights (ATRs).

Mavcom should be reminded that it is only a regulator and not a competitor to airlines. Whether AirAsia makes money or losses on certain routes is not its business.

Businesses should be allowed to operate in an open economy. Government agencies should not interfere and show an arrogant attitude in their dealings. That kind of attitude should be left behind with the ousted BN government. Time for a change at Mavcom?

Hopefully, with the new Pakatan Harapan government in place, walking the plank and government overreach is a thing of the past. Businesses should be independent and grounded in good business ethics and practices and not bow down to any master. – June 22, 2018.

* Joe Samad has wide experience working for international companies and government GLC. He is interested in new technology applications in a shared economy and issues affecting the nation,  sharing his worldview across various media platforms.

* This is the opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insight. Article may be edited for brevity and clarity.