Uggah (centre) with Padum members in a photo call after the dinner.
KUCHING: Petroleum Sarawak Berhad (Petros) will appoint a non-Muslim Bumiputera as its board member soon.
This was revealed by Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah during a dinner held at a local hotel last night.
According to him, he was tasked by the Chief Minister Datuk Amar Abang Johari Tun Openg to look for a candidate.
“I was told by him (Abang Johari) a few hours ago to do so. He now wants a non-Muslim Bumiputera member on the board of Petros,” he added.
Speaking to The Borneo Post, he commented that there was need to appoint at least one non-Muslim board member as there were comments spreading around on social media lamenting that the non-Muslim Bumiputera community of Sarawak were not represented in the state-owned oil and gas company.
Uggah however commented that the task of finding a non-Muslim Bumiputera board member for Petros is not going to be easy.
This is because the there are certain requirements and criteria the candidate must fulfill in order to become a board member.
“There are a few names being recommended but we must first make sure that the person is really qualified. We nevertheless hope to find the suitable person soon,” he said.
On Thursday, the Chief Minister’s Office announced the appointment of Tan Sri Datuk Amar Dr Hamid Bugo as chairman of the newly formed Petros.
Hamid is a former state secretary who once served with Malaysia LNG Sdn Bhd in Bintulu.
The other board members are Dato Mohammad Medan Abdullah, Sharbini Suhaili, Zuraimi Sabki and Heng Hock Cheng.
The chief minister expressed his confidence in the composition of the Board of Petros as they are all experienced industry professionals with very strong and proven track records and had served in key positions in the oil and gas industry.
Uggah was attending a reunion dinnner organised by the Persatuan Alumni Dayak Universiti Malaya (Padum) at the Waterfront Hotel here.