(Pix: Bernama General Manager Hasnul Hassan (left) presenting a photo album to Datuk Seri Mohd Annuar Zaini (right). Looking on is (centre) Editor-in-Chief Datuk Yong Soo Heong).
At yesterday’s farewell gathering for Datuk Seri Mohd Annuar Zaini, whose contract as Bernama chairman ended on Jan 31, former General Manager Datuk Syed Jamil Jaafar likened Mohd Annuar to the late Tun Muhammad Ghazali Shafie.
Muhammad Ghazali, the former Home Minister, who died at the age of 88 last month, was known to be so strict in his work that it earned him the nickname, King Ghaz.
Those who knew King Ghaz, including media reporters who interviewed him, were expected to have enough knowledge when they asked a question on an issue or subject so as not to incur his wrath or displeasure.
Bernama’s very own King Ghaz, was also feared by those who had worked for him during his six year tenure. They describe him as meticulous, one with an eye for details, perfectionist and quick tempered.
Early this week, almost everyone in Bernama – from the security guard to the general manager, received a thank you letter from him dated Jan 31 2010, with the recipient’s name penned in his own handwriting.
The letter : “From the desk of Dato’ Seri Mohd Annuar Bin Zaini’ became the talk of each and every individual in Bernama.
His expression of apology really touched their hearts. “Saya memohon maaf di atas sebarang kekurangan, kelemahan, kekasaran dan kesilapan yang telah saya lakukan dalam tempoh memegang amanah tersebut.”
Mohd Annuar, 59, was the ninth Bernama chairman and had served the agency since Feb 1, 2004.
How often do you get this kind of letter from an outgoing chairman? After his last Bernama board of governors meeting last month, he met up with the editorial staff and personally expressed his sincere thanks to them for their support to him all these years.
The sub editors are especially grateful to Mohd Annuar for approving their request for special allowance, which they have been enjoying till today. This took place during the second half of 2007 when Datuk Seri Azman Ujang was General Manager.
The allowances were more than what they asked for, with English sub editors at the General News Service being paid more than the Malay subs given the large volume of translation work handled daily.
On the other hand, Bernama Economic Service Malay sub editors are paid more than their counterpart in the English subs desk due to the heavy work at the unit.
Special posts at the Editorial were created under his stewardship. Prior to June 2007, the Editorial Department had two executive editors; one for the General News Sservice (GNS) and another for Bernama Economic Service (BES).
I was appointed executive editor of BES in April 2007. The post was renamed Deputy Editor-in-Chief on June 1 2007.
Under the editorial changes, three deputy editors-in-chief were appointed – Zulkefli Salleh (GNS), myself for BES and Zukiman Zain for Foreign and International News Service. Of course, the position comes with a special allowance.
Those who were assigned for some special projects under his leadership would have felt the heat, but they gained knowledge along the way.
While he was known to be short tempered, Mohd Annuar was said to be forgiving. One senior management said that he must have given you the shelling in the morning, but he was quick “to forgive and forget” later in the day.
He demonstrated his eye for details at major events involving Bernama. One example is Bernama’s 40th dinner celebration, which he personally sat through with the organising committee right from the venue, menu, the guests list, seating arrangements, entertainers, Master of Ceremony (MC), etc, etc.
In fact, every minute detail. Nothing should go wrong and his meticulousness throughout the preparation, gave committee members, the jitters. Thanks to him, the event ended with no hitches. It was a roaring success.
Another project is the coffee table book on former prime minister Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, which is in its final stages of completion. Those responsible for the production had to be extra cautious in all aspects, leaving no stones unturned.
Mohd Annuar, who was closely linked to Abdullah, wanted the best and he expected the best out of the book on Pak Lah. There was passion in him as he went through every inch of the book, the right photo, the right caption and the right copy.
One would have thought, he had a heart of stone. But at the farewell, he expressed his heartfelt thanks to everyone, giving praise to his two drivers whom throughout their service, had served him well. At the same time, he expressed his apology to those whose feelings he had hurt.
Syed Jamil in his speech said that despite his stern ways, Mohd Annuar had a good heart.
During his tenure as Bernama Chairman, Mohd Annuar had introduced and launched the Bernama Editorial System Terminal (BEST) for the Editorial Department and launched the 24-hour radio news and television channel namely the Radio24, and Bernama TV.
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