KUCHING, Jan 6: Freshly appointed Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (Unimas) chairman Tan Sri Kamal Mat Salih has resigned from his post following protest from the Sarawak government.
According to Free Malaysia Today, the economist announced his resignation as he did not want to be caught in any political conflict.
“I heard from some quarters that the Sarawak government wants Sarawakians. I think everyone knows that and they expressed dissatisfaction over the lack of consultation on my appointment.
“I don’t want to get involved in politics. I just want to contribute,” Kamal was quoted as saying by the news portal.
Kamal, who heads the Malaysian Institute of Economic Research (MIER), replaced Sulong Matjeraie, whose term of office is due to expire in April next year.
A former MP of Wangsa Maju from 1996 to 1999, Kamal was once a deputy vice-chancellor of Universiti Sains Malaysia.
His appointment was supposed to be effective from Jan 1, 2020, till Dec 31, 2022. He was the first non-Sarawakian to be the chairman of Unimas.
On the appointment of Kamal, the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) issued a statement that it was not consulted and notified officially of his appointment as the fourth chairman of Unimas.
CMO clarified that Unimas Board chairman has always been appointed after consultation with the state government. — DayakDaily
