MAS Restructuring Plan Must Be Brave, Innovative -- Former Deputy PM

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 2 (Bernama) -- The radical restructuring plan to revive the ailing Malaysia Airlines (MAS) must be brave enough, be innovative and think out of the box, former Deputy Prime Minister Musa Hitam said. "I wish for the sake of the country, this time we have learnt from past mistakes and do it right. The biggest challenge is to do it right. It involves patience, tolerance and able to get right feedback," Musa told press conference here Tuesday. Musa said the most important thing under current circumstances was to always remember that this involved national pride. "You cannot avoid that and it can only be upheld with new ideas," he said. He added that it was vital to regard the national airline as a business proposition, not as proposition to satisfy sentiment. "It has to be in the context of dollar and cent. If it could not, it has to close shop. It is OK if you run a welfare organisation, but this is not. MAS is a business entity, start from there," stressed Musa. He added that after making money then MAS can dispense with the welfare aspect of its business. Musa also reiterated that the union must be intensively engaged in the process. While he was quite surprised at the speed of the announcement, Musa said he wished that what would be done would be really something good. "I worry about things like that. Because I would not make announcement of major issue like this unless I have studied in-depth, argued and get feedback," he said. -- BERNAMA