Anthony Loke says his resignation letter has been personally handed to Anwar Ibrahim, who asked him to continue serving pending a decision.
KUALA LUMPUR: Transport Minister Anthony Loke has formally tendered his resignation but will remain in office for now, with his resignation set to take effect when former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak returns home.
Loke said he handed his resignation letter to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim yesterday after meeting him, with Anwar asking him to continue carrying out his duties while a decision on his resignation is pending.
“I want to stress that my resignation letter has been handed to the Prime Minister. I had a discussion with him yesterday.
“In that discussion, he asked me to continue my duties for the time being,” he said at a press conference on the sidelines of Malaysia Maritime Week 2026 at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre here today.
Loke said he had agreed to remain in office but stressed that there must be a defined timeframe for his resignation to take effect.
“That timeframe is the day Najib returns home. On that day, my resignation will take effect,” he said.
Asked when Najib would return home, Loke said he did not know.
“I don’t know. Do you know when Najib will return home? I don’t know either.
“Maybe he will leave tomorrow. Who knows?” he said.
Loke said his decision to resign was made in line with a party decision to reaffirm DAP’s position on Najib’s house arrest.
“This is a party decision, based on DAP’s response and position on the issue of Najib’s house arrest, which we do not agree with,” he said.
Loke said Anwar had acknowledged that Najib had yet to return home and therefore asked him to continue performing his duties until that happened.
“So he (Anwar) said, while Najib has not returned home, continue your duties. If, say, tomorrow he is released and returns home, then my resignation takes effect,” Loke said.
Loke, who is also DAP secretary-general, said there was currently no replacement for him and that he remained in charge of the Transport Ministry.
Asked whether he was rushing to push through projects before leaving office, Loke rejected the suggestion.
“I am doing my duties not because I am going to leave the post or anything. The ministry’s planning is not done at the last minute.
“We have plans throughout the year. We have a strategic plan every year managed by the ministry’s secretary-general.
“Our duties and execution are based on our strategic plan,” he said.
Loke offered to resign following a DAP Central Executive Committee meeting on Sept 19, after the party responded to the conditional pardon granted to Najib.
