Government Is Committed To Ensure Synergy Drive Merger Success

KUALA LUMPUR, June 15 (Bernama) -- The government is committed to ensuring the success of mammoth mergers in the country's corporate sector, such as the one spearheaded by Synergy Drive Sdn Bhd, to create efficiency and bring about overall benefits to the economy.Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said Thursday night the government has given its blessings for the plantation merger exercise and "is as keen as anybody else on what is happening (to the Synergy Drive exercise)".He said mergers are not an easy subject and not an easy task, especially when it involves three big companies."They are working at it, but I really want to see that with this merger, Synergy (Drive) will be truly a company that can be efficient, competitive and can deliver what is expected of it. And shareholders will be very happy," he said during a question-and-answer session after delivering a speech at the Kuala Lumpur Business Club dinner here.Synergy Drive is the special purpose vehicle set up by the CIMB Group to facilitate the merger of three state-run companies - Sime Darby Bhd, Golden Hope Plantation Bhd and Kumpulan Guthrie Bhd - to create the world's largest oil palm plantation company.Abdullah said the CIMB Group, acting as the marriage broker, will have a tough job to marry the three companies, "but we (the government) are committed to see that this merger takes place."Abdullah also said the government is willing to consider extending the Iskandar Development Region's incentives package to other regions in the country as well.On having sufficient talented people to meet Malaysia's needs, Abdullah said both the government's and the private sector's short term approach is to allow for the presence of foreign talent."If you are short of (local) talent, you must do that. There is no other choice," he said when elaborating what he had said in his speech earlier, about not "overly restricting" the entry of foreign skilled workers.Abdullah said the government is always trying to improve the education system at all levels and constantly encourages universities to work closely with the private sector so that market requirements can be satisfied.The existing work force should also undergo retraining to prepare for new responsibilities as they move up the corporate ladder.Under the new arrangement, he said, companies which have set up their operations in Malaysia can bring in their own executives from abroad to overcome the problem of getting the "right kind of (local) talent."However, he said, the foreign-backed corporations are also required to empower the locals with the necessary skills to help generate homegrown talent."Bring them from your countries here, but ask them to train the local people so that they too will be able to perform well and take over their (foreigners') places," he said.Abdullah said the government has also embarked on programmes to entice Malaysians working abroad to return and serve the nation."We have offered a number of incentives and some have shown interest in coming back. They know that the situation in Malaysia today is very different from what it was before."They used to think opportunities for career advancement are better overseas, but today they think it is better here," he said.He cited as an example a Malaysian doctor currently based in Canada who wants to return after he saw the state-of-the-art facilities at Putrajaya Hospital.