[UPDATED] Cabinet to be announced only this week, won’t include opposition

YAN – The cabinet line-up will be announced this week, as newly minted Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob denied that members will be chosen from the opposition.

“However, they have no participation in the cabinet. There is no unity government with the opposition.

The cabinet line-up will be announced this week as newly minted Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob denies every list that has been shared on social media.

“Please don’t believe any list. Every day there is a new list. But thank you also for helping me,” he said with a laugh.

Asked whether he would set the cabinet line-up based on the representation percentage of the political parties, he declined to comment.

“It’s dangerous, it’s getting closer,” he said at a press conference here. 

He added that the cabinet line-up must get the nod from Yang di-Pertuan Agong before making it public.

Ismail Sabri said so far he had received encouraging feedback from opposition parties who wanted to join the National Recovery Council.

“It seems that we received an encouraging response from the opposition. God willing, we will sit down together and talk.”

Yesterday in his inaugural address, Ismail Sabri extended an offer for opposition leaders to become members of the National Recovery Council (NRC) and the Special Committee to Manage Covid-19. 

The Bera MP said this was in line with Istana Negara’s wishes that the government and the opposition must put aside their political differences and work together in battling the Covid-19 pandemic and the resulting economic crisis.

“During the party leaders’ audience with His Majesty recently, he decreed that all of us forget our differences to achieve harmony for the benefit of the public.

“All parties should be ready to work together for a term to recreate a harmonious environment. In other words, we must hold tight to the principles of unity.

“I understand that the political crisis that has plagued the nation has created agitation amongst the people. Therefore, political stability must be achieved through unity. This includes cross-party cooperation.

“Thus, I would like to offer the opposition leaders a place in the National Recovery Council and the Special Committee to Manage Covid-19,” said Ismail Sabri.

He added that to move forward, the country must resolve its political power struggles in order to fight the pandemic as a “big family”, which includes civil servants and the private sector.

He used the term “keluarga Malaysia (Malaysian family)” several times in his address. – The Vibes, August 23, 2021