KUALA LUMPUR: Iskandar Ismail has been appointed as the new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Malaysia Competition Commission (MyCC) by Minister of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail, effective Oct 15.
Iskandar previously held the position of MyCC’s Investigation and Enforcement Division director from February 2013 and was the acting CEO for six months following the retirement of former CEO Datuk Abu Samah Shabudin last April.
Iskandar is a law graduate from International Islamic University (IIUM) and holds a master’s degree in International and Comparative Law from George Washington University Law School in Washington DC.
He was called to the Bar as an advocate and solicitor of High Court of Malaya in 1998 and later served as a prosecuting officer for Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM). He was part of the pioneering prosecuting team in BNM’s Legal Department until 2005.
Prior to joining MyCC as director, he was an assistant trial attorney with the United Nations for the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda in Tanzania for eight years, prosecuting genocide and serious violations of international human rights laws.
He is currently listed in the Justice Rapid Response expert roster, a professional service provider to entities that have the jurisdiction or mandate to investigate fact-find or carry out inquiries wherever mass atrocities may have occurred.
As the director of the Investigation and Enforcement Division, Iskandar has lead and overseen the investigation of many of the MyCC’s landmark cases such as Malaysian Airline Systems Bhd and AirAsia Berhad, Container Depot Operators in Penang, MyEG Services Bhd, the General Insurance Association of Malaysia (PIAM) and its 22 members, Dagang Net Technologies Sdn Bhd and several others.
He has also been frequently invited to be a speaker at several local and foreign conferences, forums and seminars given his experience and practical knowledge in the investigation and enforcement of Competition Law.
Iskandar said in a statement that he was honoured to be given the opportunity to lead MyCC, which plays a significant role in ensuring a healthy competitive culture within the business landscape in Malaysia.
“I’m looking forward to bringing MyCC to greater heights and being amongst one of the leading government agencies in Malaysia to protect the interests of businesses, consumers and the economy as a whole.
“Last but not least, in line with the policies of the current government, the Commission will not hesitate to take swift and stern action against all enterprises whether big or small that are found to be engaged in such anti-competitive practice such as cartels and abusive monopolies,” said Iskandar.
For more information on the Competition Act 2010 and the MyCC, please log on to www.mycc.gov.my.