Najib wins battle over Omar's Petronas appointment

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 29 – The Prime Minister has won the battle of wills with the Petronas board of directors over the appointment of his confidant to the board.

After being rebuffed by the board over the suitability of Omar Mustapa as a director on the grounds of an unpaid scholarship, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak wielded his power and ended the stalemate recently.

Under the Petroleum Development Act the PM has absolute discretion to appoint anyone to the board of directors. In May, he informed the board that he wished to nominate Omar – a former staff member when Najib was DPM and now key strategist.

The board disagreed. The standoff continued even after Najib followed up with a letter.

This public rebuff of the PM by the board did not go down well with Najib's inner circle and supporters in Umno. They reasoned that if Najib did not wield his authority, his friends and foes will interpret it as a sign of a pushover leader.- + selanjutnya

Najib wins battle over Omar's Petronas appointment