Gobind: Don't blame ministry for tanked TM share prices

The Communications and Multimedia Ministry should not be blamed for the fall in Telekom Malaysia (TM) Bhd share prices, said its minister Gobind Singh Deo.

Responding to an online petition calling for his resignation for his alleged bias against the telecommunications company, Gobind called for a more realistic outlook.

"Are you telling me that there are no other reasons? Let's be realistic. At the end of the day, look at the pricing.

"The prices have gone down for other telcos [...], they have reported an increase in sales and benefits from that.

"I completely understand that there are share prices involved and things like that, but it does not mean an administrator or government officials cannot ask any questions or say anything," he told reporters in Parliament today.

"If that is the case, the change we speak about will not happen. What we want is a scenario whereby we are able to talk about things, (and) we are able to improve. When you are in the service industry, you must remember that customers, and service, are very important," he added.

The petition has called Gobind to step down from his portfolio, for allegedly being biased against TM, following several of his statements condemning TM for not being able to reduce the price of its Streamyx subscription fee, and not providing explanations regarding the service to its customers.

The petition, which has collected over 23,400 signatures as at 6pm today, also claims that the current Pakatan Harapan government favours Maxis, and as a result, TM's shares have tanked to RM2.27 per unit from the previous RM6, while Maxis' shares remain strong at RM5.40 per unit.

Improve your services

Despite being confronted by the petition, Gobind vowed he will not stop speaking out for the sake of the rakyat.

"My position is that this is a free country. Anybody has the rights to start a petition, go ahead.

"But my advice to all of them is simply this - improve (your services), and all of Malaysia will support you.

"I will not stop speaking up for the people of this country, will not stop doing my duty as a minister. As the minister, it is my duty to question, it is my duty to improve things, it is my duty to try and find ways by which we can improve all the matters that come under my ministry. This is what we are trying to do," he said.

TM had previously responded to Gobind's criticism, saying it is "always listening to its customers and stakeholders", be it via individuals responses, or social media, and media statements. - Mkini