KUALA LUMPUR – Pasir Salak MP Datuk Seri Tajuddin Abdul Rahman has been removed as Prasarana Malaysia Bhd non-executive chairman effective immediately, two days after the light rail transit (LRT) collision.
His gaffes during a press conference near the incident site yesterday did not help matters as videos of him making light of the situation went viral.
His removal comes after a letter issued by Finance Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz was leaked. The letter was sent out to Tajuddin informing him of his removal from the non-executive post.
The letter read: “Finance Ministry Inc has agreed to immediately end datuk seri’s service as Prasarana Malaysia Bhd non-executive chairman. I (Tengku Zafrul) would like to express my gratitude and thanks for your service and contribution as Prasarana’s non-executive chairman.”
The document dated today was confirmed as genuine by an authorised Finance Ministry media spokesman.
A check on the MyRapid website at 8.30pm found that Tajuddin is still listed on the company’s board of directors.
The #LetakJawatanTajuddin hashtag has been trending on Twitter since yesterday, garnering more than 3,600 tweets at the time of writing.
Earlier, former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said Tajuddin will apologise to the public and media for the manner in which he conducted a press conference after the LRT crash on Monday.
Najib in a Facebook post today said Tajuddin admitted that he made a mistake during the presser.
“He also promised to resign from his post as soon as the Umno Supreme Council ordered all party members to resign at the appropriate time, in line with the Umno general assembly’s decision several months ago.
“He had expected what I was going to say. As such, he decided to take my advice and criticism.”
His comments come after the Prasarana chief was roundly panned by the public over his lackadaisical and sarcastic responses to journalists’ queries on the LRT crash that saw 64 people hospitalised.
Tajuddin has also said he will not step down, amid calls for his resignation.
He will be called in for questioning by Dang Wangi police for not wearing a mask when holding the press conference at the site of the LRT accident.
At 8.33pm on Monday, two LRT trains on the Kelana Jaya line collided in a tunnel near the KLCC station, with one train coming from Kg Baru and the other from Gombak heading towards Petaling Jaya.
Of the 213 victims, 64 were sent to Kuala Lumpur Hospital. Six are in critical condition, with three requiring ventilators. Fifteen are in semi-critical condition, while the rest sustained non-critical injuries. – The Vibes, May 26, 2021
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