Tag: Mohamed Salleh Marican

Presidential Hopeful Inspired To Run For Office By Lee Hsien Loong’s Encouragements

Whether he qualifies as a candidate in the upcoming Presidential Election is based on the discretion of the Presidential Electoral Committee (PEC), but Mr Mohamed Salleh Marican has already gone about recruiting people for his campaign.

The 62-year-old chief executive officer of Second Chance Properties told TODAY that he has assembled three out of 10 people for his campaign team, and he aims to complete the search by the end of the month.

He now has a campaign manager, a communications in-charge, and an election agent, who will be his brother, Mr Mohamed Hasan Marican, who is deputy CEO at Second Chance, an investment holding firm that also retails garments.

The September election is reserved for the Malay community, and has a tightened criteria for candidacy.

For example, those contesting, who have private-sector experience, must have a company with at least S$500 million shareholder equity.

Mr Salleh does not automatically qualify, because his company’s shareholder equity registered between S$254.3 million and S$263.25 million over the last three financial years.

Collecting the application forms Monday morning (June 5), Mr Salleh said that he is “optimistic” that he can convince the PEC he is a deserving candidate, adding that he “can’t be worried if he will fail” before he starts.

He also said that he was moved to run for presidency by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong who, at an Association of Muslim Professionals event last November, expressed hope that candidates would step forward and contest.

“I was moved by (Mr Lee’s) speech, and that triggered my intentions,” Mr Salleh said.

“After that, my friends, business associates, suppliers and even some of my employees urged me to step forward and serve the nation (because) this is a noble cause. (With) 100-per-cent support from my family members, I made a decision to contest.”

The entrepreneur, who set up the first company owned by a Malay to be listed on the Singapore Exchange, sees this as a way “to do good”, to give back to society, and as a challenge to see “how much better I can do compared with other presidents”.

Mr Salleh singled out Speaker of Parliament Halimah Yacob as a formidable contender should she contest, as she is “very popular” and someone who “takes her responsibilities very seriously”.

Applications for Singapore’s first reserved Presidential Election opened on June 1, and at least two presidential hopefuls had been seen collecting forms from the Elections Department.

The writ of election is expected to be issued in late August, ahead of the September polls.

Source: www.todayonline.com

June 6, 2017
Prominent Malays Named As Potential Candidates For Elected President

Mr Mohamed Salleh Marican’s declaration of his interest in running in the upcoming presidential election is not a total surprise.

As a prominent, successful Malay entrepreneur, his name is among several talked about in recent weeks as a possible presidential hopeful for the September election.

Meanwhile, two other figures seen as potential candidates – former minister Abdullah Tarmugi and Bank of Singapore chief executive officer Bahren Shaari – told The Straits Times they were not keen on standing for the election.

Speaker of Parliament Halimah Yacob, 62, who is widely considered a front runner, did not respond to queries from The Straits Times.

Mr Mohamad Salleh, explaining his intentions, told The Straits Times in an e-mail yesterday: “I believe I have done well for myself in business and would like to step up and give back to society in a much larger way.”

When contacted, two other prominent individuals from the Malay community touted as potential candidates confirmed they were not eyeing the election.

Mr Bahren, 54, told The Straits Times in an e-mail: “I am humbled to have my name mentioned as a potential candidate for this year’s presidential election by various media. It is always a privilege and honour to serve the nation.

“At the moment, my focus is on growing the business of Bank of Singapore with my team and deriving the synergies from our recent acquisition of the wealth and investment management business of Barclays Bank PLC.”

Mr Abdullah, 72, said it is “unlikely” he will run in the election.

“I had considered contesting earlier and many had in fact encouraged me to do so. But it is unlikely that I will contest. I have my reasons,” he said, declining to elaborate.

Other names that have been mentioned include Mr Shafie Shamsuddin, 46, the chief executive officer of PT Trans Retail, which operates Carrefour supermarkets in Indonesia.

Mr Shafie, who could not be reached for comment, was named outstanding overseas chief/senior executive of the year at last year’s Singapore Business Awards.

He is the first non-Frenchman named in 2011 as an executive director of the global supermarket giant Carrefour, taking charge of talent management and organisational development.

Source: www.straitstimes.com

June 1, 2017
Mohamed Salleh Marican – An Inspiration To Investors And Entrepreneurs

Truly an inspiration to investors and entrepreneurs alike, Mr Mohamed Salleh Marican (or Mohamed Salleh S/o Kadir Mohideen Saibu Maricar as he is registered at the SGX) is the very embodiment of the epigram, “try and try until you succeed”. Undaunted by a first failed business, Mr Salleh put up what is now Second Chance Properties, and hasn’t looked back since.

Now the company’s CEO and Executive Chairman as well as its founder, Mr Salleh is also a Spiking Sophisticated Investor. An SGX announcement last January put the post-transaction percentage of his direct and deemed shares of Second Chance Properties at 57.78%, and 8.45% respectively.

If There’s a Will…

Mr Salleh began as an entrepreneur in 1974, when he established a menswear tailoring business which he was compelled to shut down soon afterwards. He tried again just five months later by opening Second Chance, sticking to the menswear segment but switching to ready-to-wear retail. His determination paid off, and in less than 10 years, he had four outlets in Singapore.

By 1988, Mr Salleh had adopted franchising, affordable pricing and a Western fashion image for Second Chance, which enabled him to grow the company to include 18 stores in Singapore and 7 stores in Malaysia.

Mr Salleh’s first major award proved to be a double-edged sword, as winning created awareness of Second Chance as a local brand. As sales dropped drastically, he decided to change strategies again, and close 21 of his 25 stores. By 1992, he had diversified his business into ladies’ ready-to-wear for Malay women. The new line, dubbed “First Lady”, is still a bestseller today.

Mr Salleh then followed up First Lady’s success with Golden Chance, which retails gold jewellery. Soon afterwards, during the Asian financial crisis, he again diversified his business to include property, which turned out to be his most successful venture yet. Property now accounts for over 60% of the company’s profits, with rental income being the top contributor.

Today, Second Chance has over 200 employees working in 50 stores in Singapore and Malaysia. After listing on the SESDAQ in 1997, Second Chance moved to the SGX Main Board in 2004.

Mr Salleh has since won several other awards, including the Inaugural Malay Businessmen Award from the Singapore Malay Chamber of Commerce and Berita Harian; the Entrepreneurship Excellence Award from Lianhe Zaobao and the Entrepreneurship Development Centre of Nanyang Technological University; the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year award, and the Best CEO Singapore Corporate Award.

Mr Salleh in Action

Mr Salleh’s latest trading activities include increasing 1 million deemed shares of Second Chance Properties at SGD0.25 at the end of last January. A few days before, he had also increased 291,500 deemed Second Chance shares at SGD0.252.

Follow the investing action of Mr Mohamed Salleh S/o Kadir Mohideen Saibu Maricar at https://spiking.com/v/mohamedsalleh, and track Second Chance Properties’ performance at https://spiking.com/sgx/528-second-chance-properties-ltd.

Source: https://blog.spiking.com

June 1, 2017
2nd Chance CEO Mohamed Salleh Marican: I Hope To Run For President

The founder and chief executive officer of Second Chance Properties, Mr Mohamed Salleh Marican, 67, has said he hopes to run for president.

He told The Straits Times in an email on Wednesday (May 31) that he will be collecting the application forms required to contest the presidential election in September.

Mr Mohamed Salleh’s name had been bandied about in recent weeks as a potential candidate for the upcoming election, which will be reserved for Malay candidates. His company is the first owned by a Malay/Muslim to be listed on the Singapore Exchange.

“It is encouraging to know that many have considered me as a potential candidate,” he said.

“The short answer is that, I believe I have done well for myself in business and would like to step up and give back to society in a much larger way. The position and influence of the Elected President will have a great impact on whatever activities he or she choose to promote.”

He added that he “can also fulfill the call of most Singaporeans who desire a truly independent Elected President, one who is untainted by party politics”.

Under changes to the Constitution approved last November, candidates from the private sector must have been the chief executive of a company with at least $500 million in shareholders’ equity, on average, for the most recent three years.

Second Chance Properties’ shareholder equity was between $254.3 million and $263.25 million in the past three financial years, which is lower than this requirement.

However, the Presidential Elections Committee has the discretion to certify that a candidate who does not automatically meet the criteria can stand, if it is satisfied that he has the experience and ability to effectively carry out the functions and duties of the office of the President.

Source: www.straitstimes.com

June 1, 2017