“HONEST disagreement is often a good sign of progress” so said the legendary leader of India’s non-violent independence movement against British rule, Mahatma Gandhi.
Such is obviously true with regard to intellectual disputes – with caveat of open-mindedness – given that the ensuing exchanges will bring about greater development for mankind, so to speak.
But when there is so much animosity in the air, one wonders if the ongoing public exchanges between investor extraordinaire-cum-philanthropist Koon Yew Yin a.k.a Uncle Koon and investment guru Ooi Teck Bee (affably known as OTB) will only turn ugly lest both gentlemen keep their emotions in check.
First and foremost, both gentlemen must not allow their differences in the outlook of the stock market or stock pick to get the better of their friendship for ‘money’ has the bad reputation of being able to make or break relationships.
Perhaps Uncle Koon who has a stellar reputation as a one-man institutional fund should stick to his recently expressed desire ‘to temporarily quit’ the stock market amid the lingering bearish sentiment with high number of COVID-19 infections and strict lockdowns still in place.
Don’t allow your pessimism with the stock market outlook, hence how they will affect JAKS Resources Bhd, Supermax Corp Bhd and Hiap Teck Venture Bhd to be dark clouds hovering over your friendship with OTB.
The truth remains that nobody is able to outsmart the stock market – not Uncle Koon nor OTB. Both Uncle Koon and OTB can only second guess how the market will fare with 50:50 chances of hitting the bull’s-eye.
After all, both gentlemen go back a long way by having regularly been giving investment lectures in and around Ipoh.
Beyond that, Uncle Koon had told StarBiz in an article entitled “Koon in the Spotlight over Untimely Disclosures” (May 7, 2016) that OTB had also been managing some of his funds.
Time to reconcile
In a WhatsApp chat with FocusM, Uncle Koon said he has no intention to wash dirty linen in the public if not for his good intention of wanting to prevent more investors to be trapped in the stock market amid the lengthy bearish trend.
“Hope he (OTB) can see the truth which will prevail eventually,” Uncle Koon pointed out.
“What I said is that the prolonged lockdown will affect all the listed companies. Workers cannot go to work to produce anything. OTB does not like it because he is selling his weekly recommendation to buy stocks. His subscription fee is RM1,000 per year.”
In his rebuttal, OTB acknowledged that there is no sure win in the stock market but his overall performance is deemed “still good” based on his proven records.
“I touch my heart, I really work hard for all my subscribers. If they happen to lose money, I believe I have tried my very best. I do not feel shameful if I had done my best,” he responded.
“As long as I did not cause my subscribers to lose RM200 mil in JAKS Resources and above RM100 mil in Dayang (Enterprise Bhd), I think my performance is considered to be very good if compared against Koon Yew Yin who has no skill to invest in our KLSE (Bursa Malaysia).”
It is hoped that the fiery exchanges over the social media between Uncle Koon and OTB will come to an end soonest.
Instead of being at loggerheads over matters that are beyond his control, perhaps Uncle Koon in his twilight years should focus his energy instead on his philanthropic cause of sponsoring students from poor backgrounds.
Just leave the stock market alone by imagining that every stock market pundit or every stock market punter have every right to their opinions and the way they intend to invest their money. – July 28, 2021
Photo credit: Shutterstock
