1. After knowing Datuk Tajuddin will be representing Malaysia as Ambassador to Indonesia, Malaysians are seeking explanations from the Prime Minister for his choice.

2. In Malaysia, appointment of ambassadors go through vigorous process. First, Wisma Putra will go through the process to find a suitable candidate. The Foreign Minister will then propose the candidate to the Cabinet for approval.

3. The Prime Minister will then submit the name to the King for consent. After King’s consent, Malaysia will then submit the name to host country for acceptance. This system serves Malaysia well in most of the cases.

4. Datuk Tajuddin is clearly a political appointee. It terms of political appointees, the buck stops with the Prime Minister. The final decision will be made by the Prime Minister. Prime Minister decides a candidate and he will submit the name to the King for consent. The King is above politics.

5. The host country will, as a matter of tradition and courtesy, accept all nominees proposed by the Malaysian Government. Therefore, in this case Indonesia will accept any candidate proposed by Malaysia.

6. It is a shame that the Prime Minister passed the buck to Indonesia President Jokowi.

7. Prime Minister must take full responsible for all his decisions. As a matter of accountability, he should explain to the public the reasons why he chose Datuk Tajuddin. Only he knows why.

8. I am truly disappointed by The Prime Minister’s reply. The buck stops with you, Sir!

Sim Tze Tzin
MP Bayan Baru
Member of Parliament Special Select Committee for International Affairs