Updated at 9:30 pm on 9-7-2012.
Mr Martin Gilbert Barrow (Martin), who was appointed to the Board of MAS during the time when the late Tan Sri Azizan was its chairman in 2001. At that material time, he has no aviation experience at all except that he was a friend of someone in the Board of MAS.
After the MAS-AirAsia share swap was inked on 9-8-2011 by Tan Sri Azman Mokhtar, the MD of Khazanah Nasional Bhd, Martin resigned from MAS Board. Somehow Martin got himself into MAS again.
On 16-1-2012 En Ahmad Jauhari Yahya (AJ) appointed him to be the Advisor to the CEO.
Below is the e-mail from AJ:
CIRCULAR FROM GROUP CEO
To : All Staff System-wide
Date : 19 January 2012
Ref : GCEO/CIR 006/12
Martin Barrow – Advisor to Group CEO
Martin Barrow was an independent non-executive director of Malaysia Airlines for almost 10 years up to August 2011. During that time, he was instrumental in the formalisation of the Board Safety & Security Committee and worked with the Operations team to set up the Corporate Safety Oversight Department.
I am pleased to inform you that Martin and I have agreed that he will continue to be associated with Malaysia Airlines as Advisor to Group CEO reporting to me.
He will sit on the Board Safety & Security Committee as an ex-officio member under the chairmanship of Tan Sri Krishnan Tan who is also our board member.
In addition, Martin will advise us on global developments on a wide range of commercial issues, continuing his active links across the airline industry and the regulators, and will support our marketing and sales efforts worldwide. You can all contact him direct at martin@Martinbarrow.comwhen you need advice or help with any initiatives.
Please continue to treat Martin as a member of the ‘Malaysia Airlines family’ providing him with access and to any information for him to perform his functions. He will of course be treating all information as confidential within the Group.
Ahmad Jauhari Yahya
Date of Birth: 10 March 1944 (68 years old)
Qualification: Gained Oxford and Cambridge Board Examination “A” Levels in Science and Mathematics.
Attended courses in Finance and Marketing.
1962-1964 Traveled extensively in Asia, working in Australia and Malaysia.
1964 Joined Matheson & Co, London.
1965 Jardine Matheson, Hong Kong.
1965-1975 Management role in the Group’s operation in Hong Kong, Japan and Thailand.
1975-1980 Managing Director of the Group’s operations in Japan.
1980-1983 President, Olayan Saudi Holding Company, the Group’s affiliate in Saudi Arabia.
1983-1988 Regional Managing Director, Jardines operations in Hong Kong and China.
1989-2001 Director, Jardine Matheson Ltd – Group Head Office.
Key Experience in Public Service:
1979 Elected Chairman of British Chamber of Commerce in Japan.
1984-1994 Member of the Aviation Advisory Board
1984-2001 Chairman of the Sailors Home and Mission to Seafarers.
1987-1990 Member of Steering Group, New Airport.
1988-1995 Appointed by the Governor of Hong Kong as a member of the Legislative Council.
1988-1996 Chairman of the Hong Kong Tourist Association.
1989 Chairman of the Community Chest of Hong Kong.
1990-2001 Chairman of the Hong Kong Arts Festival
1996-2001 Chairman, Committee on Deregulation, Business Advisory Group.
Date first appointed to MAS Board: 29 August 2001
Board Committee: Board Safety and Security Committee (Chairman)
Other directorship of public companies: Nil
Looking at his background, he has attained GCE “A” Level as his highest qualification and no experience whatsoever in the aviation industry or public listed company.
At least Tan Sri Azman Yahya is more qualified in that sense as he has a degree, is a director of several famous public listed company namely SCOMI, CEO of Symphony House, Bolton and others.
Dato’ Rohana Rozhan and Tan Sri Tan Boon Seng, both with no aviation experience, holding high post in ASTRO and IJM but both believe they have vast knowledge about aviation.
With Martin’s background especially his GCE “A” Level, it is doubtful that he could contribute much on matters pertaining to safety and security in the aviation industry and/or advise the CEO on the global developments on a wide range of commercial issues, continuing his active links across the airline industry and the regulators.
Yours truly has been informed that throughout his directorship in MAS, Martin has been traveling extensively on MAS free of charge and of course, First Class by virtue of his directorship. Now he is still enjoying his free First Class travel on MAS as the Advisor to the CEO. Yours truly has also been informed that MAS is paying his five stars hotel whenever he visits KL.
Can anyone help with his travel itineraries thus far and whether they were for official business or personal?
At a time when MAS is BLEEDING, does MAS need to spend hundred of thousand Ringgit in keeping such character like Martin and others in MAS?
The Board of Directors of MAS will be having a meeting on 17 July 2012. MAS Board must revisit the appointment of its members and such appointment and weed out the “deadwood”, which is costing MAS a lot of money to sustain them in terms of salaries, allowances and the privilege of free First Class travel.
The Board of Directors of MAS should also withdraw all privileges accorded to its ex-directors namely Tan Sri Tony Fernandes and Datuk Kamarudin Meranun both from AirAsia who were appointed to MAS Board by virtue of the said share swap. On 2-5-2012 the said share swap was reversed by YAB PM Datuk Seri Najib.