Reveal Proton’s real owner, proxies, Syed Mokhtar urged

KUALA LUMPUR: Billionaire Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar Al-Bukhary has been urged to speak up and reveal the identity of the owner and the proxies of national carmaker, Proton Holdings Bhd.

Umno Youth assistant secretary Datuk Mohamad Sahfri Ab Aziz said former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s negative statements on the sale of Proton shares recently had caused confusion among the public.

“As a former Tokoh Maal Hijrah recipient, Syed Mokhtar should not keep quiet.

“This is to ease the uncertainty among the public as well as local and international economic experts.

“Umno Youth hereby urges Syed Mokhtar to reveal who is the real owner and who are the proxies behind Proton,” he said at the Putra World Trade Centre yesterday.

Syed Mokhtar owns the DRB-Hicom group, which bought Proton Holdings in 2012.

Proton and China-based Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co Ltd signed an agreement last week that would see Geely take a 49.9 per cent stake in Proton and a controlling stake in Lotus, the British sports car maker, from Proton.

The decision was made in an effort to rejuvenate the country’s national car manufacturer.

Second Finance Minister Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani recently said Proton would remain a national car as Proton Holdings would still have a majority holding of 50.1 per cent.

However Dr Mahathir, who expressed his disappointment with the acquisition, lamented that the sale of the Proton shares was akin to him “losing a child”.

The country’s longest-serving prime minister also said that he could not be proud of Proton’s future success as it would no longer belong to him or to Malaysia.