TM denies restricting staff’s political involvement

GE14 | Telekom Malaysia (TM) insists that it has never sought to restrict the activities carried out by its staff and that of its subsidiaries outside of their working hours, even those political in nature.

In a statement to Malaysiakini, TM defended the April 11 “guidelines” it issued to staff of the company and its subsidiaries pertaining to their involvement in the 14th general election.

However, the statement stopped short of specifically addressing the point of contention, that the directive appeared to bar employees from participating as polling and counting agents (Paca) in next month’s polls.

“TM as a corporate entity has always taken a position exempting itself from politics.

“We have never restricted personal activities of our staff, carried out in their personal capacities outside of office hours, including political activities, so long as these do not violate the company’s core values and code of conduct and ethics,” its statement read.

TM said staff are also not allowed to involve the company’s name and brand in any manner when carrying out said activities or in expressing political support.

“For example, TM staff are not permitted to wear clothes displaying any TM Group logo, that could identify them as a member of TM Group when carrying out these activities.

“Based on our code of ethics, staff that wish to involve themselves in any political activity must refer to the group’s human capital division, to ensure they fully adhere to the applied laws,” it said.

Malaysiakini had earlier today reported on the “guidelines” issued by TM, which states among others: "Telekom Malaysia employees are prohibited from acting as election agents in polling centres or acting in any way for candidates contesting in either the Dewan Rakyat or Dewan Negeri.”

The directive also barred employees from wearing clothes bearing the TM logo when attending political ceramah, distributing election material from any political party, making statements supporting any political party, and encouraging others to vote for particular candidates.

This invited the rebuke of electoral reform group Bersih, which demanded the company retract the directive, saying one’s participation in the election involved more than just exercising the right to vote.

Bersih said employers should instead encourage their staff to become Paca to ensure the integrity of the general election. - Mkini