KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 30 — Malaysia Airline Bhd’s (MAB) purchase of 25 Boeing 737 jetliners was free from any political influence, Datuk Seri Najib Razak said today.

The prime minister stressed that it was purely coincidental that he announced the airline’s decision during his meeting with US President Donald Trump at the White House.

"The decision to buy Boeing was made by MAB. There is no political influence. This has been explained by Peter Bellew,” Najib told Parliament today, referring to the former MAB chief executive.

The Pekan MP added that the Boeing purchases were consistent with MAB’s long-term transformation plan.

The Opposition including former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad previously claimed that the purchase was politically motivated, and accused Najib of being behind it.

Dr Mahathir also insinuated that Bellew resigned from his position because of the outside pressure on the management.

Bellew has repeatedly stressed that his departure from the airline was due to his desire to help his former employer, Irish airline Ryanair, which he described as a form of "national service”.