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CMS appoints Sulaiman Taib as managing director

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KUCHING: Cahya Mata Sarawak Bhd (CMS) has appointed Datuk Seri Sulaiman Abdul Rahman Taib as its group managing director.

The son of Sarawak Head of State Tun Abdul Taib Mahmud took over from Datuk Isaac Lugun, who has been redesignated as non-independent, non-executive director, effective July 8, 2021.

Welcoming Sulaiman to lead the group, CMS group chairman Tan Sri Abdul Rashid Manaf said Sulaiman’s familiarity with the company and his wide-ranging experience in businesses will be invaluable to the group as it consolidates, streamlines and moves towards a new growth path, post pandemic.

“This transition is due to early retirement of Datuk Issac,” he added in a media release.

Sulaiman brings with him a wealth of experience in banking, finance and insurance, having been the executive chairman of RHB Capital Bhd and its group of companies, according to CMS.

While there, Sulaiman chaired several of the boards and committees, including Rashid Hussain Bhd, RHB Insurance Bhd, RHB Asset Management Bhd and RHB Research Institute, apart from being a board member of RHB Islamic Bank Bhd, RHB Sakura Bankers Bhd and RHB Bank Bhd.

During this period, he was also appointed by the government on the board of Malaysian Industry Government Group for High Technology (MIGHT).

“His is also experienced in manufacturing, property development, stock broking and is familiar with Cahya Mata Sarawak Bhd, having served in various capacities there from 1995 to 2008.During his 13-year tenure, he assumed various positions including that of group chairman and group executive director.”

Sulaiman was former chairman of CMS Property Development Sdn Bhd and CMS Works International Ltd. He was then also the board member of Utama Banking Group Bhd,K&N Kenanga Holdings Bhd, Bank Utama (Malaysia) Bhd and Utama Merchant Bank Bhd.

In politics, Sulaiman was elected MP for Kota Samarahan in 2008 and served as Deputy Tourism Minister in the Federal government.

After leaving the government job, Sulaiman ventured abroad to oversee various private investments over the last few years, said CMS.

Meanwhile, the Employees Provident Fund Board (EPF), a substantial shareholder of CMS, has significantly cut its stake in the Sarawak conglomerate since last month. EPF has reduced its shareholdings in CMS to 61,166,327 shares as at June 30,2021 from 99,755,827 shares in May 27,2021.

EPF’s major disposals were 13 million shares on June 23, another 16,994,700 on June 25 and 2,993,200 shares on June 29.

CMS share price has been on the downtrend in recent weeks, falling to RM1.08 yesterday morning from high of RM2.50 in February this year.

In an unrelated development, Hubline Bhd has fixed the issue price for the second tranche of its private placement at RM0.037 per share.

The issue price represents a discount of RM0.0011 or approximately 2.89 percent to the 5-day volume weighted average price (VWAP) of Hubline shares up to and including July 6,2021, being the market day immediately preceding the price-fixing date of RM0.0381 per share, the company said in a filing with Bursa Malaysia.

Under the first tranche, Hubline placed out 261.4 million shares priced at RM0.042 each on March 22,2021.

The company has proposed a private placement of up to 390,003,014 new ordinary shares under a fund-raising exercise.

The proceeds from the share placement will be utilised to par down the group’s borrowings which stood at RM79.39 million as at Dec 31,2020 and for working capital purposes.