PUTRAJAYA – Pakatan Harapan (PH) has the most representatives in the deputy minister line-up, totalling almost half of the 27 announced by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim last night.
Its component DAP has six deputies while PKR has five and Amanah two.
Barisan Nasional (BN) linchpin Umno has five deputy ministers out of the coalition’s six, while none of BN’s components MIC or MCA were given any posts. The other BN deputy minister is Parti Bersatu Rakyat Sabah’s Datuk Arthur Joseph Kurup.
Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) also secured six deputies while Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) and Warisan have one each.
Of GPS’ six deputy ministers, four are from linchpin Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu, while Parti Rakyat Sarawak and Parti Rakyat Bersatu Sarawak secured one deputy minister post each.
Anwar had said that the deputy ministers would be sworn in at 3pm today.
It appears that religious affairs as well as the National Unity Ministry will not have deputy ministers while two were assigned to the finance portfolio.
Notably, some of the figures appointed today are family members of other political leaders.
This includes DAP national chairman Lim Guan Eng’s sister Lim Hui Ying, who is deputy education minister, as well as Warisan president Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal’s younger brother Datuk Mohammad Yusof Apdal, who is appointed deputy higher education minister.
Hui Ying is also one of seven women appointed yesterday while PKR’s Adam Adli Abd Halim is currently the youngest deputy minister at 33 years old. Second youngest is PKR’s Akmal Nasrullah Mohd Nasir, 36.
Besides that, former Melaka chief minister and now state opposition leader Adly Zahari is deputy defence minister.
With 28 ministers and 27 deputies, Anwar’s cabinet now matches the cabinet size under Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad after PH won the 2018 general election.
In contrast, the cabinets of Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin and Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob had 70 ministers and deputies.
After the 15th general election, the unity government comprises MPs from PH (82), BN (30), GPS (23), GRS (six), Warisan (three), Parti Kesejahteraan Demokratik Masyarakat (two), and one from Parti Bangsa Malaysia, as well as a single independent MP. – The Vibes, December 10, 2022
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