KUALA LUMPUR: Bukit Bendera member of Parliament Wong Hon Wai has urged Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob to revoke Pasir Salak member of Parliament Datuk Seri Tajuddin Abdul Rahman's appointment as the ambassador-designate to Indonesia.
Wong said Tajuddin's conduct during his tell-all press conference on Monday as well as during Parliament sessions and in previous incidents clearly showed that he has no diplomatic charisma to helm the important role.
"Tajuddin previously served as Prasarana's chairman and was removed from the position by the Finance Minister in May 2021 following the LRT Kelana Jaya's train collision that left 213 passengers injured.
"His political revelations on Monday has brought to light the political turmoil within Umno's top decision-making body.
"Therefore, I urge the prime minister to cancel his appointment as the country's ambassador to Malaysia. The prime minister should not use public positions to appease those in his faction.
"Appointments to public positions should be based on qualifications, experience and the right personality, and not determined by political considerations," he said in a statement today.
Wong said the government could revoke Tajuddin's status as the ambassador-designate to Indonesia since he has not received his letter of appointment yet from the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah.
Last week, Tajuddin was removed from the Umno supreme council - the party's highest policymaking body - and was replaced by Selangor Barisan Nasional (BN) information chief Isham Jalil.
This came after the government appointed Tajuddin as the new ambassador-designate to Indonesia.
Tajuddin, on Monday, urged Umno president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi to step down due to his ongoing court cases.
Backing his calls, Padang Rengas member of parliament Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz called for Umno to hold party polls ahead of the 15th general election.