It was reported in the Star today that the sponsorship for QPR home jersey will cost MAS RM18 million for two years. Whereas in June 2011 Genting UK sponsors Aston Villa, a much more renown team, main jersey for only RM17 million also for two years. For full report, please see below. This was how En Mohmed Rashdan Yusof aka Danny, the newly crowned Executive Director of MAS by Khazanah, was trying to save MAS from the brink. It was a senseless decision by MAS. A clear case of no due diligence being exercised before making the decision. Just like the secret MAS-Asia share swap! A clear case of being led by the nose!
One would have thought that MAS should not have gone on a spending spree, since it has been just been “rescued” by the secret MAS – AirAsia share swap. MAS so-called new management was still suffering from the old sickness of saying one thing and doing another. This is the continuous problem faced by MAS where its executives only knew how to preach to its employees that MAS had to cut costs and their benefits to make MAS viable. At the same time you have “whiz kid” like Mohammed Rashdan Yusof aka Danny of BinaFikir fame spent MAS money at his whim and fancy. The MAS Board must have discussed and agreed to this unnecessary expenditure. They knowingly allowed Tan Sri Tony Fernandes to lead them by the nose. Why?
The way in which this “whiz kid” and the MAS Board have committed MAS to spend RM18 million for QPR home jersey during such difficult time showed that they were clueless and were appointed to perform certain “special tasks” best known to themselves. No wonder the BinaFikir Sdn Bhd’s “Widespread Asset Un-bundling” (WAU), which was the brainchild of this “whiz kid” and Tan Sri Azman Mokhtar, failed miserably and WAU had to be rescued by the said secret share swap!
The recent events shown that the said secret share swap was not a simple share swap after all. It was so glaring that the hearts of this “whiz kid” and the other Board members, like Tan Sri Md Nor Md Yusof (author and executor of WAU), Datuk Azman Yahya (a director of Scomi and Pharmaniaga, Bolton, Sympnhony House), Tan Sri Wan Azmi Wan Hamzah (of E & O share fame) were never with MAS from day one. This real intentions could be seen from sudden cancellation of several full load Firefly flights during the Hari Raya season and termination of Firefly’s profitable routes from JB to Kuching and KK. They are not protecting the best interest of MAS. It was a clear case of “Harapkan pagar, pagar makan padi.”
Mr PM Sir, the rakyat demand that you step in to stop the rot before it is too late!
THE STAR REPORT PAGE 1 BIZ 12-9-2011
PETALING JAYA: Malaysia Airlines‘ (MAS) recently-announced sponsorship for the Queen Park Rangers (QPR) home jersey in the Barclays Premier League will cost the national carrier some RM18mil or 3.7mil, according to a source.
The total sponsorship fee for both MAS and AirAsia for the English professional football club, which involves a term of two years, would cost some RM30mil (6.2mil), the source added.
“MAS will take up a bulk or almost 60% of the total fees while the remaining will be forked out by AirAsia Bhd and its related companies which could also involve AirAsia X.
“Typically, the home jersey sponsorship is more expensive than the away jersey,” the source said.
On Monday, MAS and AirAsia signed a jersey deal for QPR which will see the MAS logo adorn the jersey at home while the AirAsia logo will be used on the team’s away games.
“This sponsorship is the first major initiative of our new brand and marketing strategy that would see important advertising money spent on boosting our top line. This is a key component in our drive to regain global market share, profitability,” said MAS executive director Mohammed Rashdan Yusof.
Even so, most analysts are not thrilled. Their main grouse is that MAS should instead be focusing on strengthening its flagging financial status and showing some concrete moves towards this end.
Moreover, the crucial post of a chief executive officer for MAS has still yet to be filled.
The sponsorship deal by the two airlines closely follows a landmark share-swap deal involving the major shareholders of the respective airlines in early August which had turned the rivals into allies.
AirAsia’s chief steward and major shareholder Tan Sri Tony Fernandes and his partner, Datuk Kamarudin Meranun, collectively own a 75% stake in Tune QPR Sdn Bhd, which in turn owns 66% of QPR Holdings Ltd. Fernandes, who only recently acquired the stake in the football club, is currently chairman of QPR.
In an earlier announcement to Bursa Malaysia, AirAsia said it would cough up some RM2.4mil or 500,000 as sponsorship fees for the duration of the two-year term.
Only in June this year, Genting UK, the largest casino operator in Britain, sealed a pact to be the main jersey sponsor for Aston Villa for two years.
