Doorgift / Goody Bag

Public Bank AGM

I attended the long awaited Public Bank AGM on 27 March 2017. It being my first time to a Public Bank AGM, I didn’t know what to expect. It’s tough to put into words the atmosphere of an AGM so I’ll let the photos I took do most of the talking. I’ve received photos from some of our readers and compiled the of them for your viewing pleasure. Thank you again, contributors!

So there were 2 main reasons I wanted to attend this year’s AGM. First and foremost, the door gift. And also to meet the legend himself – Tan Sri Dato’ Seri Dr. Teh Hong Piow, founder of Public Bank. He is 87 this year.

I realize I could’ve improved this post with the full documentation of my journey. But alas, I’m still a newbie. I’ll learn.

Getting there

According to the notice, the AGM was poised to begin at 11 am sharp. Registration started as early as 7 am. Reading around online, I figured that parking would be an issue. So I decided to try out our new LRT. The whole journey took me about an hour and cost RM4.

The AGM was held at Shangri-La hotel in Kuala Lumpur. I arrived at 10 am and boy was I glad I took the train. The picture doesn’t really show it but it was a complete standstill outside the hotel. It didn’t help that all the drivers were old people..

We arrived just in time to catch a glimpse of Tan Sri Dato’ Seri Dr. Teh Hong Piow with his entourage walking into the hotel. All attempts of getting a picture of him with me inside failed miserably. I did snap a shot of his ride – it is a Rolls Royce. And he seems to love the number 3, all three cars had them.

Registration

Next step was registration. They had like 20 counters so there wasn’t much queueing up to do. It took all but 5 minutes to register with my NRIC and get my doorgift. It was a bloody red-colored bag that says Public Bank at the side. Major disappointment. I guess useful now that Malaysia is implementing the no plastic bags rule all over.

‘Refreshments’

As specified in the AGM notice, refreshments will come in the form of coffee and tea. Nothing else. I made do with some water and headed across the street for some sandwiches at O’Briens.

The Annual General Meeting

Finally, at 10.45 am, I headed down to the main hall for the main event – Public Bank AGM. 90% of shareholders attending the AGM were old folks, where are all the young Malaysian investors at?! The only youngsters below the age of 40 I see there were Public Banks’ staff.

Also, as seen in some of the pics, the main hall where Public Bank AGM was supposed to be held was fully seated. It was a sad and pitiful sight to see so many old people being forced to stand around throughout the duration of the AGM. Many couldn’t take it and had to leave the hall, not to be let in again.

Rant

Rant incoming. I really hate Malaysians. We are sorely lacking in class. When the board of directors opened up for questions from the floor, guess what happened?

1. Uncle Singh came up to the mic and complained about the bad service and malfunctioning of the thumbprint readers at his branch;
2. Chinese Auntie was next, she congratulated the directors, wished Tan Sri good health etc… And proceeded to promote her god damned charity. Even had the audacity to shout out her phone number to get donations;
3. More congratulations and wishing of good health for the chairman;
4. A woman in kebaya claims she flew from east Malaysia because her parents sent her to request for FD for senior citizens that pay monthly interests;
5. Middle aged guy asked to continue the FD promo because he likes it; and
6. More congratulations and wishing of good health for the chairman.

Seriously.. wtf. An AGM isn’t the avenue to discuss your bloody thumbprint reader at your kampung branch. Neither is it the place to ask for donations for your charity!!

The board of directors and the founder of Public Bank doesn’t want to hear you wishing him good health 20 times during a meeting. As for your FD requests, take it up with your branch manager or something. Not to the board of directors. GEEZ

Apologies for the rant but seriously every single one of the shareholders either asked stupid questions or said stupid stuff. Essentially, everybody’s’ time was wasted. The chairman of the meeting was visibly pissed and I really respect him for having the patience to deal with Malaysians.

End.

That last picture. That same phrase and mantra have been repeated time after time. You hear it, especially from your relatives and grandparents. It goes like this ‘If you purchased 1,000 units of Public Bank shares 50 years ago, subscribed to all its rights issues, and reinvested all dividends. You’d be a millionaire today. So during this Public Bank AGM, they did the math and came up with this diagram. Not only would you be a millionaire, you’d have RM4.1 million today.

It goes like this ‘If you purchased 1,000 units of Public Bank shares 50 years ago, subscribed to all its rights issues, and reinvested all dividends. You’d be a millionaire today. So during the Public Bank AGM, they did the math and came up with this diagram. Not only would you be a millionaire, you’d have RM4.1 million today.

Also the 19% compounded return p.a.

My comments about old people are meant as light hearted humor. I respect my elders and if anything, the showing of so many elderly people at this Public Bank AGM is a sign of the trustworthiness and capabilities of the bank. So please refrain from sending me any hate mail on this issue. 

As always, thank you for reading guys. I hope more of you will be able to join me for other AGMs in the future.

For more AGMs, head over hERE for a long list of Malaysian companies and their door gifts.