MAS affected by cronies, says Anwar

Photo: Bernama

KUALA LUMPUR: Non-transparent political decisions in the country giving opportunities to one or two cronies has affected the once prestigious Malaysia Airlines (MAS), says Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

The chairman of Khazanah Nasional Bhd, the sole ordinary shareholder of Malaysia Airlines Bhd (MAB) said due to past mistakes, such a decision has burdened the country.

“Don’t erase such a historic decision to defend a few cronies while putting aside national interest.

“Efforts to rehabilitate (MAS) have begun but it would take time because the topic is discussed during weekly Cabinet meetings on how to save it (the airline).

“But believe us when we say that the government and Khazanah remain committed to ensuring the airlines' success because it is our national carrier and it has to make a comeback to perform,” he said during his speech at the 30th Khazanah anniversary celebration.

Present at the event were Finance Minister II Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan, International Trade & Industry (MITI) Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz, Plantation and Commodities Minister Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani and Khaznah Nasional Bhd Managing Director Datuk Amirul Feisal Wan Zahir.

Recently MAS has hit a series of technical issues affecting hundreds of passengers with the latest taking place on Monday (Sept 2) involving a flight from Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) to Incheon International Airport, South Korea, which turned back due to a technical issue with the hydraulic system.

On Aug 21, flight MH386 from Kuala Lumpur to Shanghai had to return due to cabin pressure.

On Aug 20 flight MH128 en route to Kuala Lumpur from Melbourne made an emergency landing at Alice Springs Airport (ASP). In early August, flight MH001 from London to Kuala Lumpur diverted to Doha for repair.

Malaysia Aviation Group (MAG) group managing director Datuk Captain Izham Ismail said that a combination of factors, including weather, technical and manpower challenges, supply chain constraints, and the ongoing normalisation of global aviation operations post-pandemic, has contributed to the recent Malaysia Airlines (MAS) operational difficulties.