Saifuddin should take full responsibility – Anifah

Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Abdullah should take full responsibility for the blunders in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Datuk Seri Anifah Aman said.

The former foreign minister in a statement today said he would have handled the situation differently and believed Saifuddin could have done better.

Anifah was referring to the two senior diplomats being recalled from the UAE after failing to coordinate administrative and logistic matters during Prime Minister Datuk Seri Sabri Ismail Yaakob’s recent visit to the emirates.

He said an internal investigation should be taken first before recalling the two diplomats.

“They (the two diplomats) should not have been recalled in haste. I have my doubts about such senior and experienced diplomats overlooking important details especially when it involves our prime minister,” said Anifah.

Normally, he said, before an official visit by the prime minister to a foreign country, thorough preparations involving the foreign minister would have to be made.

Anifah said when he was the foreign minister, prior to an official visit by the prime minister, he would be on site earlier to ensure the necessary preparations were made.

“As the foreign minister, I would have taken full responsibility for the shortcomings which happened during Ismail Sabri’s visit to the UAE.

“This is a major embarrassment for our country, and a minister is always responsible for any shortcomings of the ministry and he must defend his officers.”

Anifah said the hasty action in recalling the diplomats would reflect badly on the nation as it would be deemed as incapable of organising a visit of a head of government.

The officers in Wisma Putra were all experienced and those selected to be heads of missions were usually top diplomats and had years of experience under their belts, he said.

“Incidents like this rarely happen and even if it did, it could have been prevented had the foreign minister been in the UAE beforehand to personally oversee the preparations for the prime minister’s visit.

“Being there beforehand is part of the job of a foreign minister and if he failed to be there, he should not have agreed to or ordered the recall of the two diplomats,” Anifah said.

He said it had always been normal practice for an internal meeting to be done in Malaysia at the ministry for every event, especially one involving the country’s prime minister.

“It would be followed by a briefing with the Prime Minister’s Office on logistical arrangements, followed by the foreign minister and an advance team arriving earlier and a final pre-council meeting at the country of the event.” Nst

Saifuddin should take full responsibility – Anifah

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