KUALA LUMPUR – Putrajaya’s approach of leaving struggling Malaysia Airlines Bhd’s (MAB) fate in the hands of shareholders has provoked the ire of a flight attendants’ union, which slammed it as irresponsible.
National Union of Flight Attendants Malaysia (Nufam) president Ismail Nasaruddin said members are “disheartened” after Finance Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz told news broadcaster CNBC yesterday that the government will not bail out MAB.
“We want the government to play a role instead of what Tengku Zafrul said yesterday. Now’s not the time when they (Finance Ministry) went public and said the government will not interfere, but they will leave it to Khazanah (Nasional Bhd).
“A lot of our guys were not happy with this statement. Everyone felt threatened and demoralised by the statement.
“You (Tengku Zafrul) said you are not going to take responsibility… but during the Covid-19 pandemic, they used all the airlines, MAB and AirAsia, to bring home Malaysians stranded across the world. Don’t tell me now that you’re saying ‘We are not going to take responsibility’.”
Sovereign wealth fund Khazanah is the sole shareholder of Malaysia Aviation Group Bhd (MAGB), which is MAB’s holding company.
Tengku Zafrul said the ministry will not bail out any airline, including MAB, despite the aviation industry being hammered by the pandemic.
“So, the government feels that at this time, we will not bail out any airline. It is up to the shareholders of the respective airlines to provide any support that they feel is appropriate and necessary.
“But the government’s primary concern is, of course, to ensure that there is sufficient connectivity, which is necessary to support the country’s continued economic recovery.”
MAGB, in an October 2 statement, said the group will undergo an “urgent restructuring exercise”, and is negotiating with its lessors, creditors and key suppliers.
Other tough measures that have been taken since March include salary cuts for the management team and pilots, no-pay leave, seeking payment deferrals and renegotiating contracts.
However, these problems were not conveyed to Nufam or other MAB unions, said Ismail.
“There seems to be quite a little bit of information on what MAB plans to do. But our sources have already mentioned a number of times that they may apply for some discounts on the lessor.
“Lessors are not budging for discounts or whatever, so MAB has no choice, but to seek some kind of court order to dispute some of the payments, seeking a lessor or discounts. That’s what we heard.
“So, until then, they might want to look at a second phase of restructuring. Our concern is that once it’s restructured, it will bring down the number of employees.”
He cited unsuccessful past attempts at restructuring, including an overhaul in 2015 that saw MAB being delisted and controlled by Khazanah.
Nufam, which was supposed to meet Tengku Zafrul and other government officials, is now demanding an earlier meeting given that the airline is in dire straits, said Ismail. – The Vibes, October 6, 2020
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