Annuar walks back deputy's claim that MOF unilaterally appointed DNB

 

The Communications and Multimedia Ministry and the Finance Ministry always work together in various matters, including in the implementation of the 5G single network or Single Wholesale Network (SWN) concept through Digital Nasional Bhd (DNB).

Communications and Multimedia Minister Annuar Musa said any major decision would be made by the cabinet, meaning that it is a collective decision.

“There’s no one ministry which does everything, so we must always accept that and must always recognise the principle of collective responsibility.

“We do together (any decision) and there’s no problem at all and we will continue to work together, we will continue to consult and we will continue to do things the proper way as certain decisions neither my ministry or treasury make the decisions. Major decisions will be made by the government,” he told a media conference after launching a telecommunications service company Unbox Malaysia in Petaling Jaya today.

He said his ministry and the Finance Ministry had agreed to prepare a joint paper on issues involving 5G and DNB so that a decision can be made by the cabinet and pending that, programmes involving implementation of 5G would run as usual.

Meanwhile, Annuar also thanked Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz for the explanation on the issue and said that the government is always prepared to provide clarification if there was any ambiguity in answers it provided during the Parliament session.

The time given to answer a question in Parliament is very short and there is the possibility of confusion, he added.

According to Annuar, Zafrul had contacted him first before making the explanation.

“I always engage and consult with the finance ministry, and before he posted the explanation with regards to the (5G) issue that was raised during the Parliamentary session, he had contacted me and I agreed for the minister to make the clarification,” he said.

Yesterday, Zafrul was reported to have said that the single 5G network or SWN concept had been discussed jointly between the Finance Ministry and the Communications and Multimedia Ministry in the cabinet since 2019.

He was clarifying a statement by Deputy Communications and Multimedia Minister Zahidi Zainul Abidin in the Dewan Rakyat last Thursday that there was no consultation with his ministry on the appointment of DNB to undertake the deployment of the 5G network and infrastructure via the SWN model.

- Bernama