Chief Minister Taib Mahmud as well as PM Najib Razak have been trumpeting their mercantile policies in a lig! ht of pl audits given by an outfit called a Oxford Business Group..
Explaining a stress of a praises lavished upon Sarawak as well as Malaysia by a Oxford Busines Group, a Chief Minister's own websiteclaimed that a announcement "provides in-depth detail upon Sarawak' stream mercantile opinion as well as what a future binds for a state".
However, a Editorial Director of these reports is nothing alternative than a former Editor of a UK's most ridiculed porn rag, a Daily Sport, that sealed progressing this year.
Peter Grimsditch was sacked 4 years after having launched a Sport for a UK 'Porn King', David Sullivan in 1988. He was additionally sacked as Editor of an additional low-brow red top, a Daily Star, as well as is right away formed in a Middle East.
- From editiing porn to financial PR Peter Grimsditch
Another 'boob' by Taib?
The explanation raises subject marks over a mercantile focus as well as imagination of a announcement that have been not satisfactorily answered by a education of a primarily childish staff:
"They have been mostly in their 20s as well as they get posted for a integrate of months to do a business", explained a single comparison executive of a reputabl! e mercan tile announcement in a Middle East, where OBG have additionally proposed operating.
"It is fundamentally what a single calls an 'Advertorial'. They write sympathetic certain things about a subject matter. The role is obvious, that is to give a best possible spin as well as encourage investment. The State will afterwards allude to a report".
Oxford Business Group Report was launched with pushing by Taib
Under these circumstances, a grand pushing with that Taib privately launched a Oxford Business Gr! oup's 'Country Report' upon Sarawak in Oct during a Pullman Hotel, seems rather ridiculous. 'The Report Sarawak' was presented as if it was a reputable as well as design third-party analysis, giving a thumbs up to investors. In actuality it was just a self-centredness publication, that he paid for out of state funds! We suggest investors should thus additionally review this Sarawak Report to benefit a little balance!
- Taib as well as Najib both privately attended grand launches of their country reports with OBG's tip management organisation drifting in
Najib as well as his mercantile ministers have likewise indulged in stupid self-promotion formed upon Oxford Business Group puff pieces, permitting youth OBG staff to opine in interviews with Bernama about Malaysia's macro-economic policies as if they had education in a subject.
- Daniel Moore BSc in Marketing
For example, OBG's 'Regional Manager', a childish Daniel Moore, was quoted during length in Bern! ama during a time of a budget, praising a New Economic Model! for 'fo cusing in formulating an sourroundings that authorised for a in isolation sectors to become a engine for mercantile growth':
"This in spin will lead to more interest from unfamiliar markets as well as a more organic expansion bend for a domestic markets" explained Mr Moore, who is undoubtedly an glorious salesman, though who has no certification as an economist.
In further articles Moore would have pleased Najib by arguing that a country should "support expansion sectors such as tourism, Islamic financial as well as halal products".
- 'No devise B, given you consecrated a Oxford Business Group to contend you were doing fine' Borneo Post!
Why have been taxpayers being charged ?
We disagree that a whole attention of releasing 'economic reports' to regard government leaders should not be charged to a taxpayer, though rather by a domestic celebration concerned.
- Taib during a launch of his self-centredness announcement Pullman Hotel in October
This is quite a case if misleading spin is being presented by a government as if it was design analaysis of their policies.
All OBG reports follow a same format of featuring a graceful photograph of a heading domestic personality of a relevant country upon a cover page as well as afterwards proceeding to lavish regard upon them throughout.
This is a fair indicator as to who has consecrated a book as well as an similarly great sign that purchases by investors of a heftily labelled reports, ( 130 /RM650) each, have been not a way a project is honestly funded!
- Jana has spend her complete 4 year career during OBG, after gaining a degree in Information Science
So how much did Taib pay out for a glamorous 'Country Director' Jana Treeck to conduct up a organisation for 6 months in Sarawak 'analysing trends' as well as entrance to a end that:
"The Report: Sarawak 2011 would play an important role in relaying a State's emerging investment opportunities upon a international stage"?
The Report Sarawak in actuality consists especially of extensive crawling interviews with a line up of Taib's prime cronies as well as family members!
Inevitable set-piece features include Taib himself, his cousin as well as commercial operation partner Hamed Sepawi, his brother-in-law Robert Geneid, Jabu, Masing, Awang Tenggah, along with Taib's key unfamiliar helpers Richard Curtis of CMS as well as Torstein Dale Sjotveit, a Norwegian Head of Sarawak Energy.
Each talk is merely a polite subject as well as answer event accompanied by a graceful coop sketch of a subject, that they presumably get a copy of!
Nevertheless, a 'advertorial' is presented by Oxford Business Group as "a commercial operation comprehension report" formed upon "in-country research" conducted "by gifted analysts" in sequence to brand investment opportunities.
Massaging vital statistics? Is The Report Sarawak any more picturesque as well as design than this standard charity from a Daily Sport?
According to a OBG website :
"Oxford Business Group's in-depth coverage as well as investigate is produced! in-coun try by a teams of gifted as well as dilettante analysts.
For any cou! ntry you cover, you aim not usually to yield macro-analysis of key sectors though additionally to brand investment opportunities in sub-sectors, all upheld by graphs as well as statistics".
In fact, when Sarawak Report reviewed The Report Sarawak, a study identified a series of advertisements as well as a directory of hotels as well as businesses, though no graphs as well as no statistics!
We thus subject whether Peter Grimsditch's Country Reports for OBG owner Michael Benson-Colpi have been attempting to be any more picturesque or design than his representations of females for a Daily Sport?
The economy is serious
Previous thumbs up given by a Oxford Business Group have not provided much means for encouragement. Last year OGB's The Report Libya gave a rosy representation of a dictatorship of Ghadaffi, that has obviously not been innate out by events!
Speaking of fast mercantile reforms as well as closer international ties a Report grovels "The country's progressing domestic story was troubled, though given 1969 [the date of Ghadaffi's coup] institutions have grown during a steady gait as well as have been right away largely stable"! A couple of months after this insightful inform a people of Libya had risen up opposite their tyrant as well as a rest is history.
The Report Libya in 2010
The Oxford Business Group, that describes itself as "highly acclaimed" made no improved pursuit of their inform upon Tunisia, where OBG owner Michael Benson-Copi interviewed a hated former President, Ben Ali, himself in 2010.
Just weeks before a overthrow that deposed him, a inform states:
"political as well as amicable stability distortion during a core of a Tunisian model"! [OGB Report]
As for a! economy , that is believed to have been a root means of a Tunisian uprising, The Oxford Business Group headed a coverage with a statement: "The Economy a model for resilience, staving off a global financial crisis" !
Such outputs might leave a reader wondering upon what basis a Oxford Business Group describes itself as 'highly acclaimed' when it comes to a mercantile research of investment opportunities as well as future developments?
But, behind in a days of editing a sport Peter Grimsditch explained a little of his reduction plausible stories by saying: "It's not dishonest journa! lism you have been printing what people contend happens to them." This maybe provides a useful insight for his approach to 'Country Reports'.
- OBG provides PR bulletins for a clients, most of that find their way to agencies! similar to Be rnama as well as afterwards into publications similar to a Borneo Post
Sarawak Report has investigated a UK headquarters of Oxford Business Group, that claims to have been edition country reports given 1994. There is no relationship to Oxford a town nor Oxford a University. The London HQ advertised upon a company's website is in actuality an bureau let centre, where rooms can be let upon demand. We were sensitive that a Oxford Business Group no longer has bureau space in a building, although "they infrequently still come in as well as out" .
- Office let space in Great Titchfield St, London
OBG Founder, Michael Benson-Colpi has been involved in a series of company ventures, together with a St James Partnership, right away defunct, as well as Oxford Business Group (Reports) Limited, OBG ! Reports Limited, Oxford Business Group (London) Limited as well as Oxford Business Associates LLP, all proposed in Feb 2010.
- Michael Benson-Colpi as well as nonetheless an additional inform is produced. This time for a Economic Community of West African States
His Country Report enterprises have been tellingly targetted during 'emerging' economies, in countries with limited accountability as well as transparency.
He is obviously welcome to his business, though a people of Malaysia as well as Sarawak should know that Taib as well as Najib have been using his services to foster themselves for PR purposes as well as to justfify their policies as well as not for genuine mercantile analysis.
In a arise of so most recent PR scandals it seems that nonetheless more open money is being poured out upon controversial self-promotion by BN politicians, ready to go up as genuine design analyses by foreigners.
- Sarawak Report
"We all know after Prime Minister (Datuk Seri) Najib Razak took over from his prototype (Tun) Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, there were problems, like inner squabbles," Muhyiddin (picture) told reporters now at a press conference here.
A new investigate in between Penang Malays indicated which a "pure" Malays there have been not utterly happy which Penang UMNO is dominated by Indian Muslims or what they tenure here as "Mamak". Apparently, a little UMNO branches in Penang even control their meetings in Tamil.
While describing a explain by ex-PKR deputy boss Syed Husin Ali in his recently-launched 'Memoir Perjuangan Politik' (Memoirs of a Political Struggle) as a lie, Zulkifli pronounced a comparison PKR personality had himself met him as Anwar's deputy to ask Zulkifli to empty his seat. 
"Syed Husin told me which if he vacated a chair of deputy PKR boss to give approach to Azmin (in photo), Anwar betrothed him a in front of of senator," he wrote.
"I was additionally called by (PKR president) Wan Azizah (Wan Ismail) who told me she was forced to empty a Permatang Pauh parliamentary seat.
