PAKATAN Harapan (PH) Youth has expressed surprise at the attitude of Bersatu supreme council member Datuk Wan Saiful Wan Jan who is now vocally criticising the government’s decision to appoint a second 5G operator.
Yesterday (Nov 11), the Tasek Gelugor MP slammed Berjaya Group founder Tan Sri Vincent Tan Chee Yioun by calling on the “ultra-wealthy gambling king not to indulge in partisan politics” after the latter ticked off eighth premier Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin who is also the Bersatu president for insisting on a single 5G network.
“He (Wan Saiful) disputed the transparency and necessity of this measure (the need for a second 5G spectrum) as if the government was turning its back on the rakyat’s interests,” PH Youth information chief Ammar Atan pointed out.
“However, this attitude is contrary to his silence when the Perikatan Nasional (PN) government gave an exclusive contract to Digital Nasional Bhd (DNB) which clearly created a monopoly without any competition or transparency.
“Despite this, Wan Saiful has never come forward to criticise or dispute this monopoly, hence showing his very hypocritical attitude with his openness in criticising the current government.”
Unviable 5G network model
Recall that Tan who is also U Mobile Sdn Bhd chairman fired the first salvo by stating that mobile network operators were previously ready to roll out 5G at their own expense but the PN-led administration insisted on a single network to be implemented and monopolised by DNB using taxpayers’ funds.
“RM4 bil has been spent to date and RM12.5 bil more has been planned through various contracts by DNB over a period of 10 years. In total, RM16.5 bil of taxpayers’ money are at stake,” Free Malaysia Today cited him as saying from a statement.
“The monopolistic single network model chosen by the Muhyiddin administration was against global best practices. The monopolistic single wholesale network model has failed in other countries.”
Echoing sentiments expressed by the Berjaya Group patriarch, PH Youth further challenged Wan Saiful to present concrete evidence if he claims there are irregularities in the U Mobile appointment process “instead of merely hurling slander”.
“By opening up the space for competition, consumers now have more choices at more competitive prices as opposed to monopolies that force people to depend on one provider,” justified the PH youth wing.
“Therefore, the government’s actions deserve recognition from the market as mentioned by TS Vincent Tan.”
In his rebuttal, Wan Saiful has challenged Tan to disclose rise in the value of his shareholding in U Mobile after the government granted the second 5G spectrum to U Mobile.
“How many tens of millions of ringgit will Vincent Mahakaya Madani personally earn?” the Bangi Bersatu division chief asked while claiming that Tan is close to the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) chairman Tan Sri Salim Fateh Din who is also the Malaysian Resources Corporation Bhd (MRCB) deputy executive chairman.
“The media reported that MRCB has formed a consortium with Vincent Tan’s related company in bidding for the HSR mega project,” revealed Wan Saiful. “With such a great relationship between these two Madani giants, I wonder if we can be sure that the 5G spectrum allocation process is completely transparent.” – Nov 12, 2024
