The Minority Shareholders Watchdog Group (MSWG) had stakes in 232 public-listed companies at the end of August, giving the body with the locus standi to attend shareholders’ meeting to protect minority interest.

MSWG chief executive officer Abdul Wahab Jaafar Sidek said:-

·       the group had taken proactive action by buying shares in certain listed companies so that it could attend the shareholders’ meetings as corporate representatives and participate actively as shareholders.

·       The criteria for the purchase of shares in selected listed companies included firms with issues raised by minority shareholders, companies subject to action by the regulatory authorities as well as those having a wide impact on stakeholders.

·        MSWG would also continue to attend shareholders’ meetings by way of proxies from minority shareholders.

·       The Shareholding Survey 2007, conducted in collaboration with Nottingham University Business School, was due for completion by the end of October. This survey covers all companies listed on Bursa Malaysia on June 30, 1997 and June 30, 2006, with the objective of identifying and comparing the demographic of shareholding, shareholding structures and value of the listed companies before and after the 1997 financial crisis.

·       As for the Company’s Meeting Survey 2007, it was expected to be completed by end-November. The survey, covering top 100 listed companies, is a collaborative effort between MSWG and Universiti Teknologi MARA.