AirAsia group chief executive officer Tony Fernandes should be looking after his airline company as it is not doing well, said Urban Wellbeing, Housing and Local Government Minister Abdul Rahman Dahlan.

Abdul Rahman said this in response to Fernandes' call on Wednesday for the government to address the ailing ringgit instead of trying to censor the internet.

"I appreciate his comment. He is a good friend of mine. 

"I would think he should be advising his board of directors because I think AirAsia is not doing that well at the moment," Abdul Rahman was quoted as saying in an interview with The Star Online .

Abdul Rahman ( photo ) said unlike a company, a government is also responsible for the security of a nation.

"As a company you might not want to be interested in the security of the nation or the unity of the people. 

"If you are a government, you care about the economy, security and unity. It goes hand in hand," he was quoted as saying.

Abdul Rahman urged Fernandes not to be misled as the government did not plan to ban the internet.

"What the government wants to do is to ensure that the Malaysian Communication and Multimedia (MCMC) Act is strengthened so that it has more power to deal with lies, slanders, provocation and unfounded allegation spread by irresponsible people using the Internet or social media," he said.