KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 12 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today said that the need to change with the times and minister’s performance necessitated his much-anticipated Cabinet reshuffle.
Anwar said the federal government’s one year in power has ‘drawn the curtains’ over his Cabinet’s performance and there was a need to make some adjustments in order to keep up with the times.
“It is not just based on past performances, but changes in terms of economic growth, cost of living and also international acceptance which has changed how the Foreign Ministry works.
“There are also issues concerning higher education, especially when we are now exploring new fields such as Artificial Intelligence and digital transformation, which drove me to consider some adjustments according to present conditions and demands,” he told a press conference at Putrajaya.
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Anwar also said there will be no further changes to the current Cabinet line-up for the following four years until the next general election should it perform well without any political pressure.
On former chief executive of the Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan’s appointment as the second finance minister, Anwar said the former has shown enough competence and ability in managing the federal statutory body in the past.
“Well my personal view, I think that I have built a consensus that the Finance Ministry other than being headed by me must have a strong professional team to ensure we are on the right track, focus on the economy and not sideline or deflected by political pressures,” he said.
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Anwar’s new Cabinet line-up saw the formation of two new ministries and the return of several former Cabinet members namely Titiwangsa MP Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani, Damansara MP Gobind Singh Deo and Kuala Selangor MP Datuk Seri Dzulkefly Ahmad.
Amir Hamzah and former Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia’s Dean of the Faculty of Shariah and Law, Zulkifli Hasan were both sworn in as senator at the Dewan Negara earlier today.
As senator, Zulkifli will take on the post of Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Religious Affairs).
Previous Human Resources minister V. Sivakumar is the only Cabinet member to be dropped following a corruption investigation over alleged cash kickbacks from an unnamed businessman who had been detained alongside two ministerial aides.
