KUALA LUMPUR – After being sworn in as the country’s 10th prime minister, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s first major challenge looms before him as expectations mount on the nature and composition of his cabinet.
The Pakatan Harapan (PH) chairman will have to juggle between the demands of the components in the unity government for candidates of their choice to be picked, and the expectations of the public and civil society groups that only clean individuals of calibre and competence be appointed.
Already, speculation has been rife that Umno president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi is seeking a senior ministerial position, supposedly as part of a larger strategy to fortify his position in Umno ahead of an impending internal election latest by May next year.
There also appear to be demands by the various parties for their lawmakers to be adequately represented in the cabinet, one that should be reflective of the total number of seats they won in the election.
But for Transparency International Malaysia (TI-M) president Muhammad Mohan, these should not be the principal factors under Anwar’s consideration when naming his ministers and deputies. To him, Anwar should look beyond just ensuring that every party gets their fair share of the cabinet pie.
Instead, he stressed the importance of appointing only those who are of genuine quality, even if this means that some parties may have fewer cabinet members in proportion to the seats they won in the recently concluded 15th general election.
“Anwar should not appoint certain leaders just for the sake of keeping his coalition partners happy,” Muhammad told The Vibes yesterday.
Most critically, the PKR president should avoid selecting MPs with court charges hanging over their heads to instil public confidence in his administration, said Muhammad, as well as to ensure a truly clean cabinet, while those appointed must declare their assets publicly in the spirit of transparency.
On top of this, he said it is vital for Anwar to choose only those truly qualified, both in their fields and based on their educational background.
If necessary, Muhammad said it would serve Anwar well to even appoint professionals, by way of naming them senators.
“In fact, even certain leaders who contested in the election but lost, if they are qualified, capable, and can add value to the government, then why not?”
Electoral watchdog Bersih chairman Thomas Fann similarly said qualifications and competency should be the main criteria as Anwar ponders upon his ministerial choices.
However, he shares a different view to Muhammad in that he believes that the representation in the cabinet should reflect the strength of the parties they represent, to avoid an instance where almost all of the MPs from a smaller partner are in the front bench of Parliament while those from the stronger party are in the backbench.
Difficult job of placating everyone
Among the components of the unity government, there are already purported demands being made for certain key positions.
For one, Anwar has openly acknowledged that the two deputy prime minister’s posts will likely be given to Barisan Nasional and Gabungan Parti Sarawak, the two coalitions with significant representation in Parliament, indicating some sort of prior arrangement.
Questions will now be asked on who the likely candidates are, with an Umno insider confirming to The Vibes that Zahid is one of the choices, alongside a few other names such as Umno number two Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan.
If Zahid is indeed appointed, restlessness is expected from among members of the government, considering his ongoing corruption case.
In Sabah, Upko has also urged Anwar to at least appoint a minister from the party to represent Sabah PH, with its Penampang MP Datuk Ewon Benedick expressing hope that by being in cabinet, it can push for the implementation of promises made pertaining to East Malaysia.
While Gabungan Rakyat Sabah chairman Datuk Seri Hajiji Mohd Noor and Warisan president Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal respectively told The Vibes they will allow Anwar the space and room to make his own decisions, the PH chairman is expected to make at least a couple of appointments from the state to keep in check any possible discontent.
Beyond this, Anwar will also have to consider whether to appoint leaders from his own coalition who are embroiled in court cases, including DAP national chairman Lim Guan Eng and Muda president Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman.
And by having non-PH parties join the government, together with his promise of a cleaner cabinet, Anwar will be forced to overlook a number of PH MPs as potential ministers.
How PH members respond to this will depend on their magnanimity and broad-mindedness to see the unity government work out.
Facing these constraints of needing to placate all parties – not least members of the general public – Anwar’s looming cabinet announcement is expected to face serious scrutiny from both inside and outside of his administration. – The Vibes, November 26, 2022
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