PETALING JAYA: Former Umno information chief Shahril Hamdan has questioned the timing of the government's move to ban the use of Waze among civil servants, saying the navigation app's links to Israel have been known for years.
While acknowledging national security concerns surrounding the app, Shahril questioned why concerns over Waze were only being raised now and whether the government had a serious long-term strategy to reduce Malaysia's reliance on foreign technology.
“If we have known for years that Waze is registered in Israel and continues to operate from there, why is it only becoming an issue now? Its not like we just found out two or three months ago," he asked in the latest episode of the Keluar Sekejap podcast.
Shahril said the government needed to demonstrate a genuine commitment to technological sovereignty rather than sensationalise the issue.
“If the government is serious about data sovereignty and security, and reducing our dependence on foreign technology, it needs to take meaningful action over the coming years.
“To me, there is an element of performance here,” he said.
Shahril also questioned the promotion of locally developed navigation app TuJu as an alternative to Waze, saying it was not yet ready to compete with established platforms.
He also warned against reducing the controversy to a debate over support for Israel or Palestine.
“The issue now risks becoming about who opposes the Israeli regime and who doesn't. But the issue is actually far more complex and requires a genuine commitment from the government to come up with a plan,” he said.
Co-host and Muda deputy president Zaidel Baharuddin, however, defended the push for locally developed navigation technology, saying Malaysia should not abandon efforts to develop TuJu because of its early shortcomings.
He acknowledged the app's technical weaknesses but noted that platforms such as Waze and Google Maps became more effective as their user bases grew, enabling them to provide more accurate real-time traffic data.
Zaidel said developing local geospatial technology was particularly important for national security, especially for sensitive operations involving the armed forces and police.
“I believe that when it comes to technological sovereignty, the armed forces and police should not use foreign geospatial technology for official duties, as the information involved is extremely sensitive,” he said.
Zaidel maintained that TuJu's shortcomings should be addressed without abandoning the broader goal of strengthening Malaysia's technological sovereignty.