Loke in China for official duty, to handle resignation matters later

Transport minister Loke Siew Fook is proceeding with a pre-arranged trip to China to represent Malaysia in the 12th Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) transport ministers’ meeting.

The transport ministry said the event would involve several bilateral meetings and signings of memoranda of understanding, including deals between Putrajaya and Beijing in the land transport, rail, maritime, aviation and logistics sectors.

“After the official event in Beijing, the minister is scheduled to travel to Shanghai to join Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s delegation before returning to Malaysia to handle matters related to his resignation as transport minister.

“The transport ministry will continue ensuring that all of the ministry’s matters and responsibilities are handled and carried out professionally,” it said in a statement.

The two-day Apec transport ministers’ meeting starts today.

Loke, the DAP secretary-general, announced on Saturday that he would resign as minister following the conditional pardon granted to former prime minister Najib Razak.

He said he would need some time to manage outstanding matters in the ministry before officially stepping down from the post.

Anwar said he would meet Loke to discuss his resignation after their Shanghai trip.