KUALA LUMPUR: Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad (pix) has revealed that there are several parties who have shown interest in buying over troubled national carrier Malaysia Airlines Bhd (MAS).
The prime minister said the government is considering selling off MAS after several measures taken to put the airline back on track have failed.
“There are certain parties who want to buy MAS, be it local or from foreign countries. We are not dismissing whether to sell it or not.
“We can see that although we have appointed a foreign management to oversee the airline, MAS still recorded losses. So, one of the ways (to save MAS) is to sell it,” he told a press conference at the parliament lobby, here, today.
“I love MAS. I want MAS to be the national airline. But it seems as if we can’t afford it,” he added.
Mahathir was asked on updates pertaining to MAS after he said last week that the government was seeking solutions to keep the national carrier flying, including options of selling it off or shutting it down.
His comments came after aviation analysts said the carrier’s failure to meet its three-year target for profitability has made it unsustainable.
Commenting further, Mahathir said strategies taken previously to save MAS has proven inadequate, including the RM6 billion fund injection by the government.
He noted that its strategy to lay off some 6,000 staff also failed, pointing out that the carrier had to subsequently cut down the number of its flights, thus decreasing its income.
“When they laid off 6,000 employees, MAS was no longer able to fly like before. Many flights were stopped.
“If they reduced the number of workers and managed to maintain their old status, only then could there have been savings. But if the number of workers are reduced, and their works also reduced, then there’s no difference,” he said.
