Here is what Prasarana Malaysia Bhd — the transformative driver of Malaysia's public transport systems and services — currently owns and operates: two light rail transit (LRT) networks, the Kuala Lumpur Monorail and the Mass Rapid Transit.
Here's what is bedevilling it since 2021: technical glitches at the Kelana Jaya LRT line (again) and lately, the Kajang MRT line, causing service disruptions and inconveniencing thousands of commuters.
If these woes aren't stressful enough, Prasarana has to contend with a personal injury suit that eight commuters filed over alleged negligence that resulted in injuries sustained in the Kelana Jaya LRT crash of May 2021.
Anthony Loke, the transport minister, dug deep into his empathy well to publicly apologise to commuters, but he too realises that, as the transport overlord, his reservoir of apologies is finite. Loke too is anxious for answers and solutions because hapless Prasarana is also groping for answers.
The company has been instructed to hold a special crisis meeting and compile comprehensive reports articulating the technical glitches and means to resolve them. Prasarana must answer these conspicuous inquiries: what really caused the breakdowns? Is it incompetence? Is there a poor maintenance culture? Is it so hard to emulate the reliable services of other nations?
The accidents and disruptions of services point to a severe bug in the system, likely an apparent software meltdown that stymied communications. Prasarana's top technicians can't seem to pinpoint the source of the malady, but how the bug inserted itself may be insidious.
If software errors are eliminated, investigators might look into claims of sabotage, hinted last year by the company's first chief executive officer, Datuk Ridza Abdoh Salleh. Ridza has a "jargonistic" flavour to his idea of sabotage: "accumulated management issues", where he flatly ruled out engineering or technical negligence.
He lobbed a slew of other jargons to explain this plot: "characteristic nature of failure" stemming from "management issues" accumulated over the years. His prognosis of said issues? Too many top layers consuming big fat salaries, creating unnecessary red tape and bureaucracy, besides staff animosity.
Any other person conjecturing these allegations would be deemed as conspiratorial, but being an industry veteran who ran operations from 1998 to 2006, Ridza's assertion has weight.
If the system bug persists, the practical move is to replace the aging control system, but it's one Ridza thinks will work only temporarily. The Prasarana problem is a not just regional but a national, perhaps even international, concern.
For now, we'd appreciate earnest initiatives and creative ideas for, first, the quick fix, and second, the big fix. To meet public expectations, we'd suggest that the transport operator volunteer daily or bi-weekly media updates to reassure commuters that everything possible has been and will be committed.
If, after all efforts shrivel to nothing and disruptions continue on a third-world basis, then we'll support the public petition for the entire Prasarana management to resign so that a competent team may rise and take care of business.