Road Transport Department (RTD) director-general Solah Mat Hassan said today that the order not to open tenders for vehicle registration in Melaka for license plates from MCA 1-9999 to the public is still in force.

"No new instructions to the contrary were issued by Ong Tee Keat during the time he was Transport Minister," he said in a statement here today.

According to Solah, to return to status quo, RTD would need a new directive from current Transport Minister Kong Cho Ha to cancel to old instruction issued by the former minister (Ong).

Solah explained that the department had received official notification on Feb 17 from Ong's senior private secretary when Ong was Transport Minister not to open tenders for the said license plates to the public.

Yesterday, Ong had said that he had rejected the memorandum by his senior private secretary asking for these license plates to be reserved for members of the MCA, of which he was president then, in March.  

- Bernama