Fahmi: LLM top brass must answer if govt 'misled' over TuJu

 

Malaysian Highway Authority's (LLM) top management must be accountable if the government was given misleading information about the capabilities of the TuJu navigation application, said government spokesperson Fahmi Fadzil.

"If inaccurate information was provided, the senior management of the organisation concerned must be held accountable. That is the government's position," Fahmi (above) told reporters in Petaling Jaya after a Malaysian Media Council event today.

He said this when asked for comments on LLM chairperson Hasni Mohammad's clarification that TuJu was never intended to compete directly with Waze.

In a recent interview, Hasni said TuJu was developed primarily to improve services along tolled highways, rather than function as a full-fledged navigation application.

"It is not a navigation application like Waze. Our collaboration is simply intended to improve our Traffic Management Centre," Hasni previously told Malaysiakini.

Hasni also questioned whether LLM and TuJu developer Prosignal Consortium Sdn Bhd had accurately represented the application's functions during an Oct 20 National Security Council (NSC) briefing with Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.

Hasni Mohammad

"If the briefing given by LLM to the NSC was misleading, it should not have happened.

"If that occurred, I do not think it is something we should take lightly," said Hasni, who did not attend the briefing.

‘Ask Works Ministry'

Fahmi, also communications minister, said he was not present at the meeting in Parliament and could not verify what information was presented.

"We will leave it to the relevant authorities to take any necessary action," he said.

Asked whether the government had summoned LLM for an explanation following Hasni's remarks, Fahmi referred the matter to the Works Ministry.

"Ask the Works Ministry. The Works Ministry is responsible, and LLM is an agency under its purview," he said.

The controversy erupted after Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on Oct 20 urged Malaysians to switch from Waze to TuJu, citing national security concerns over Waze's links to Israel.

The government subsequently restricted civil servants from using Waze, although other navigation applications, including Google Maps, remain permissible.

TuJu soon faced complaints over technical glitches and navigation shortcomings, prompting Anwar to acknowledge on Oct 23 that the application was incomplete.

Hasni later clarified that Anwar instructed TuJu to be upgraded, and any costs will be referred to the terms of LLM's agreement with Prosignal. - Mkini