A Royal Commission of Inquiry should be set up to probe the massive losses incurred by MAS, said DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng.

He said no action has been taken despite numerous police reports lodged by the national carrier against its former chairperson Tajudin Ramli.

"In view of the huge amount of monies involved and the failure of the police to act... only a Royal Commission of Inquiry can determine the real cause of MAS' problems and the adequate steps to be taken to prevent it from incurring billion ringgit losses," he added in a statement.

Recently, MAS announced a net loss of RM280.7 million in the first quarter, ending June 30 this year.

Soon after, its managing director Ahmad Fuaad Dahlan announced his retirement while Idris Jala , the new chief executive officer, will take over next month.

Poor planning, decisions

Lim also echoed the views of MAS employees union (Maseu) president Alias Aziz, who on Tuesday blamed poor planning and decisions by the MAS management for the problems.

Alias was responding to Finance Ministry parliamentary secretary Helmi Yahya's suggestion that MAS consider offering a voluntary separation scheme (VSS) in view of the company's present financial difficulties.

Adding to this, Lim said that a Royal Commission of Inquiry must be conducted before any decision can be made on retrenching MAS workers.