GEORGE TOWN, June 22 — Penang Port Sdn Bhd (PPSB) managing director Datuk Ahmad Ibnihajar gave his assurance that its management and staff will retained for the next five years even though the company will be taken over by a new owner.

He said he was not worried who the new owner would be but hoped that they would deliver and continue the management’s plans.

However, Ahmad said PPSB had yet to be informed by the government whether the government-linked company would be privatised, and said he only knew about the issue through media reports.

“We are in the dark just like you. People are coming in to the office...we are told to give cooperation but nothing final... whether it (privatisation) is on or not, it has yet to be determined by the government,” he told a press conference here today.

Also present was PPSB chairman Datuk Seri Dr Hilmi Yahaya and its chief operating officer Obaid Mansor.

The conference was called to clarify some confusing statements regarding PPSB lately, especially on the privatisation matter and that Penang Port would be relegated to a feeder port.

Penang Port came into the limelight recently, with the Penang government rejecting the privatisation of PPSB to tycoon Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar al-Bukhary.

It was reported last week that Syed Mokhtar’s Seaport Terminal Sdn Bhd had won the bid to take PPSB private. — Bernama