PM urged to name ambassador to Indonesia as soon as possible

PM urged to name ambassador to Indonesia as soon as possible


DAP central executive committee member Tan Hong Pin has urged Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob to immediately appoint an ambassador to Indonesia.

This comes after a list of new ambassadors slated to receive their appointment letters yesterday reportedly did not include Pasir Salak MP Tajuddin Abdul Rahman, who was initially poised to become the ambassador to Indonesia.

“This means that the post of the Malaysian ambassador to Indonesia is still vacant after 16 months and now the interim authority only has limited powers to manage the diplomatic affairs of the two countries,” Tan (above) said in a statement yesterday.

The former Skudai assemblyperson said Indonesia is a very important ally as it is Malaysia’s third largest trading partner among the Asean nations.

The two countries also have many issues in common, he added, such as being the two largest palm oil producers in the world and the perennial issue of cross-border haze.

“Therefore, the prime minister is urged to immediately name a professional ambassador to Indonesia to help Malaysia in coordinating the issues between the two countries to guarantee the country’s interests,” Tan said.

Malaysiakini previously reported that Tajuddin’s name was not among the list of new ambassadors receiving their appointment letters from the Yang di-Pertuan Agong yesterday, according to sources.

There has been no official announcement as to why the MP’s name was not on the list, or whether his appointment was revoked. There have been conflicting news reports on the matter.

While some reports claim Tajuddin was dropped as ambassador to Indonesia, other reports said the appointment was only “delayed”.

Tajuddin was later quoted as saying, “No comment, ask the foreign minister or prime minister.”