REMEMBER the person who labelled KPMG “a shoplot auditor” at the height of the legal tussle between Serba Dinamik Holdings Bhd and its external auditor in June last year?
Well, Datuk Ilyas Pakeer Mohammed who was the then chairman of the financially strapped global integrated oil & gas outfit is also the director of Awesome Media Network Sdn Bhd, the holding company of Awesome TV which has been accused of propagating racist slur in a recent news reporting.
Recall that on Sunday (Nov 6), former Klang MP Charles Santiago has berated the free to air channel that’s broadcast on Astro Channel 123 and MyTV for its “racist to the core” and seemingly “fear mongering” 1:41 news clip on the 15th General Election (GE15) aired via its Berita 7:57 segment.
Apart from Ilyas, the TV station also boasts celebrity and evergreen crooner Datuk Irwan Shah Abdullah @ DJ Dave, 74, who is an UMNO member for years as director, according to research compiled by current affairs e-newsletter The Malaysianist.
Elsewhere, there is Johan Mohamed Ishak, 46, who was the former Serba Dinamik’s independent non-executive director (INED).
Both Johan and Ilyas, 71, had very brief spell in the O&G outfit – they were both appointed to the company’s board on June 18, 2021 but resigned on Nov 22 that year citing “the requirements imposed by Bursa Malaysia on Serba Dinamik had prohibited them from fairly discharging their duties as independent directors”.
Johan is also currently the managing director of Awesome Media and deputy managing editor for Berita 7:57, according to his LinkedIn profile.
Two other directors of Awesome Media are Ilyas’ son Datuk Adam Mohamed Ilyas and his daughter-in-law Datin Ezzan Zalilah Zulfadzli (Adam’s wife).
In fact, a check by Malay Mail with the Companies Commission of Malaysia showed that Awesome Media Network is owned by Awesome Broadcasting (55%), AP Holding Bhd (30%), and Ezzan (15%).
“Incorporated in 2019, Awesome TV is so far loss-making. According to the company’s 2020 annual report, it posted a net loss of RM36 mil for that financial year,” revealed The Malaysianist.
“It’s a family business. Awesome Broadcasting is owned by Adam. While Ezzan is Adam’s wife, AP Holding is controlled by Ilyas. Now, AP Holding touts itself as an investment holding company and claims to have RM2 bil in assets under management and promises a 6% return annually.”
Under its portfolio, it only lists Exchange 106, according to The Malaysianist. On April 11 last year, Ilyas took to the media claiming that he took over the Finance Ministry’s stake in the skyscraper (about 51%) while describing it as a “fantastic deal”.
This led convicted former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak and former Klang MP Charles Santiago to question the deal and urged the Finance Ministry to explain the stake sale.
Ilyas would quickly issue an about-turn, saying it had not acquired the government’s stake, calling the whole episode a “miscommunication”.
“During this kerfuffle, he used a different vehicle Koperasi Amanah Pelaburan Bhd. AP Holding – established on August 28, 2020 – seems to be a newer vehicle,” observed The Malaysianist.
Back to the brouhaha about Awesome TV’s racist slur, the station yesterday (Nov 7) claimed that its report exhorting Malay voters to turn out in droves during polling day or risk being overrun by ethnic Chinese voters was manipulated by those with political interests.
In a statement, it labelled some of its critics as those who are against the Bumiputera agenda.
“Some parties with political interests, especially those who are not supportive of the Bumiputera agenda, have manipulated Berita 7:57’s objective to become racial on social media,” a spokesman pointed out.
“Awesome TV sees this manipulation as malicious towards Awesome TV that is attempting to get voters to be responsible in exercising their voting rights.” – Nov 8, 2022
