The breakdown of the LRT Kelana Jaya line service since last week could be an act of sabotage, reveals Prasarana Malaysia Bhd’s first chief executive officer (CEO) Datuk Ridza Abdoh Salleh.
In a post on LinkedIn, Ridza said that based on his experience as the top management from 1998 to 2006, the technical failure is unlikely due to the negligence of the engineer or technician, but management issue that has accumulated over the years.
“It is very unfortunate that the problem manifested its ugly side at a time when the 15th General Election (GE15) is just 9 days away. If the problem occurred 10 days later, the blame game could go a different way altogether,” Ridza said.
Speaking to The Vibes, he explained that the failure could have been due to the unhappiness among the layers of staff within Prasarana, adding that he does not rule out the possibility of sabotage.
Elaborating further, Ridza said the organisation have layers of people with the top management earning a lot of money but those at the bottom of the hierarchy earning not so much.
He added that this then creates animosity. “It is possible when you don’t look after the lower-ranked staff morale. They hold the spanner, the screwdriver, nut, and bolts,” he was quoted as saying.
“This could be the result of an unhappy working environment for quite a while and now it is showing,” he added.
Kemaskini Laluan Kelana Jaya: Berikut adalah stesen-stesen yang akan beroperasi sehingga jam 11 malam. pic.twitter.com/QWsFCjajYw
— Ask Rapid KL (@AskRapidKL) November 8, 2022
Overhaul needed at RapidKL
Ridza suggested that RapidKL needs a lot of overhauling so such problems can be avoided in the future.
“I think they can change the whole computer system with a compatible one due to its obsolescence. But that’s is a short term and other problems may resurface again in the future,” he said.
Ridza then explained that RapidKL is a complex organisation with a wide range of professionals within the organisation. Thus, having too many layers at the top would not only increase the payroll but create unnecessary red tape and bureaucracies and cause animosity among the staff.
“I have hinted enough to give some ideas on the kind of overhauling that is required. Prasarana or RapidKL is not a pot to earn fat salary and do nothing. Everyone from top to bottom must dedicate to work tirelessly.”
“It is because the LRT operation never stop 365 days a year including Christmas or Hari Raya. Having meeting in air-conditioned room can be temporary adventure.”
“The real test is when 16 stations are closed, as announced that day,” Ridza said.
Meanwhile, Ridza said he is not blaming the current government but he hoped that the management and the board will take his suggestion seriously if they want to prevent similar failures from happening in the future.
 Datuk Ridza Abdoh Salleh.){kind=link}