KUALA LUMPUR – The previous government’s decision to award low-cost carrier MYAirline with an operating licence has been called into question, with DAP national chairman Lim Guan Eng claiming it has impaired Malaysia’s reputation in the global airline sector.
In a Facebook post today, Lim took the former administration to task for a supposed “failure of governance”, alleging that there had been a lack of proper diligence by authorities.
“The top question asked is why MYAirline Sdn Bhd (was) given an operating licence by the previous government when they have such a dubious financial background.
“Such failure of governance by the previous government had impaired Malaysia’s international reputation in the airline industry.
“Was any proper diligence done by the relevant authorities then until the budget airline company can go bust barely a year after operations commenced?” he questioned.
He added that while he is certain that the Transport Ministry and the Malaysian Aviation Commission (Mavcom) will conduct a thorough investigation, action must be taken not just against the company but any government official that may have colluded with the company.
Recommending that MYAirline’s management and shareholders be severely punished for “defrauding” 125,000 passengers of RM20 million in flight tickets booked for up to March next year, Lim also said that the airline’s sudden suspension of its operations yesterday might be “criminal in nature.”
“The abrupt termination of services and flights without any public assurances by the company of a full refund of the RM20 million bought by the 125,000 passengers is not only irresponsible, as stated by Transport Minister Loke Siew Fook, but may be criminal in nature,” Lim said.
“The management has acted in a criminal manner by hiding crucial information and even defrauding both the authorities and their customers, who had gone to the airports fruitlessly for non-existent flights.
“Many angry passengers feel cheated, especially the 10,000 passengers on 39 flights who turned up in vain yesterday.”
Yesterday, Loke said that Mavcom has been directed to exhaust all available measures to hold MYAirline accountable for its last-minute suspension of operations, which the carrier said was due to financial constraints.
He also admonished MYAirline for its “irresponsible” conduct, saying that the ministry was only notified of this action mere hours before it occurred.
Following its announcement on ceasing operations, the carrier later said that its dire financial situation is preventing it from offering immediate assistance to its passengers stranded at various airports nationwide.
Instead, it directed affected passengers to contact its representatives via its customer service email, [email protected], which is only available from 7am to 12am, to initiate the refund process.
Previously, MYAirline passengers took to social media to lambast the carrier for its sudden suspension of operations, claiming that the move is “inconvenient” as no prior warning was provided to travellers who had already purchased tickets with the airline.
Various airlines have since offered assistance to MYAirline passengers stuck at airports, including Malaysia Airlines, which is offering passengers a 55% discount on their fares for affected routes. – October 13, 2023