Tan Sri Mohd Hassan Marican's (in car) term as president and chief executive officer of Petronas ends today. — Bernama pic
KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 9 — Petronas is one brand that makes Malaysians proud. And for over a decade, one man has been the face of Petronas, the man we bid farewell today.
The mood was mixed with a tinge of sadness as he walked to the foyer of the Petronas Twin Towers, shaking hands with the staff and well-wishers. For Tan Sri Mohd Hassan Marican, who has helmed the corporation since 1995, his term as president and chief executive officer (CEO) ends today.
It was obvious that he was fighting back the tears as he smiled at the staff.
“I am okay,” he said, when asked by Bernama how he was doing.
The staff in their thousands had been waiting at four separate spots on their own free will from 4.30pm to wish Hassan, who was accompanied by his wife Puan Sri Noraini Mohd Yusoff from his office in the 81st floor, farewell.
Hassan was proud of his staff and always reminded them they were doing a national service.
He would always relate to the press how his men had struggled under the hot sun in the desert and drilled the deepest ocean. He wanted them to know that they were special and that Petronas had contributed to nation-building.
And today, they gathered to bid goodbye to a very special man with fond memories.
Some, unbashedly, cried. Others sang the Petronas anthem and applauded him as he walked by amid shouts “We love you Tan Sri”.
The staff held up notes and placards saying “U’re simply the best”, “You rock,” “TQ for the legacy” and “We are sad you are leaving”.
Shuzairin Shuib and Salwa Mohd Salleh, from the International Business Unit, said they were sad and touched as Hassan had given so much to the organisation.
“He is a good leader, bringing Petronas to greater heights,” they said.
Yugentharan, from Research & Technology Unit, said he was sad because Hassan was a good leader.
“He has done a lot of good things, looking into the sector of education, scholarships” he said.
Many were disappointed at him leaving Petronas and had wanted him to have a proper farewell. It was understood that many cried over a two-page farewell note that he posted yesterday, thanking the entire Petronas family across the globe, on the platforms, sailing the oceans, in the desert, in the snow and service Giving away 8,888 Free Cards! Get your Tune-In Card now! 
Tan Sri Mohd Hassan Marican's (center) term as president and chief executive officer of Petronas ends today. — Bernama pic
He had said that Petronas had instilled in its people the resolve to deliver superior performance to leave a legacy for future generation.
Trained as accountant, Hassan, 57, had joined Petronas in February 1989 as senior vice president of finance. He was under the tutelage of yet another great man Tan Sri Azizan Zainul Abidin.
Azizan and Hassan had led a strong and committed management team which was responsible for the many successes of Petronas today.
Petronas, set up in 1974 to look after the country’s petroleum resources, made its first international venture at the turn of the 1990s, in line with its business integration, value-adding and globalisation strategy, and has never looked back.
Hassan was appointed president and CEO in 1995 and had assumed the post of acting chairman with the passing of Azizan in 2004 at age 69. Hassan was said to be visibly upset with by the latter’s demise.
Petronas then was already a strong company and ranked among Fortune Global 500’s largest corporations in the world, with a presence in more than 30 countries.
From its humble beginnings in 1974 with a paid-up capital of RM10 million, its shareholders’ capital had grown to RM232.1 billion as of March 2009 while total assets were valued at RM388.1 billion.
Petronas contributed more than 40 per cent to the federal government’s coffers and has since its inception, paid the government a total of RM471.3 billion.
It announced a pre-tax profit of RM89.1 billion for the year ended March 31, 2009 on a revenue of RM264.2 billion.
Petronas usually sets aside up to 35 per cent of its profits every year for investment.
For the year, it has made RM74.0 billion in payments to the federal government which accounted for 45 per cent of the government’s revenue and 71.4 per cent of its pre-tax profit.
Its international operations were now the biggest contributor to the group’s revenue.
Hassan has proven his mettle and the baton is now passed to yet another able man, Datuk Shamsul Azhar Abbas, who will assume the president and CEO posts tomorrow.
Shamsul, who was MISC Bhd’s managing director prior to his retirement last year, has been with the company since 1974.
He has vast experience in the petroleum industry, having served in several senior positions including vice president of oil business, vice president petrochemicals, vice president exploration (upstream) and vice-president of maritime and logistics.
Some of the staff met by Bernama said they welcomed the new boss who was said to be another charismatic leader. — Bernama
汽 车出了问题而须回收并非不曾发生的事，但丰田在这次事件的表现却让人摇头。《纽约时报》社论批评丰田公司对车主的投诉不重视，反映缓慢和缺乏透明度。我看 电视新闻记者访问那些车主，不少车主固然对车出现问题不满，但他们更加生气的是丰田公司那种不理不睬的回应，以及对消费者权益的漠视。
日 本研究专家金斯顿（Jeff Kingston）对丰田汽车公司在这次危机的差劣表现放在日本的企业文化和法律制度的角度下去探讨。他为《华尔街日报》撰写的文章指出，日本企业虽然 注重质量，但缺乏对消费者权益的起码尊重。一般人的观念是产品安全之类的问题只会出现于“中国制造”的产品，其实日本也多次发生产品安全问题。
丰 田危机对从政者来说又有什么启示呢？当然，政治有政治的规律，商业原则并不能直接套用。但从某个角度来说，所有的政党都像企业般推销自己，而选民则是消费 者。要消费者保持对某一产品的忠诚，公信力和产品质量是要素。对政党来说，它的政见、候选人和执政后所推出的政策就是产品，而公 信力的基础就是对选民（消费者）权益的维护和对产品质量的保证。就如消费者会对某个的产品有所期待一样，选民也期待政党会实践它所承诺的政见。如果对其政 见不断跳票，一个政党的公信力便不断降低。
饶兆斌是美国东北大学政治学系博士研究生。
二零一零年二月三日 下午二时五十八分
