PETALING JAYA: A special Cabinet meeting is due to be chaired by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim at 3.30pm Tuesday (Nov 11) in Putrajaya.
The meeting is expected to have a full quorum, with the exception of Foreign Minister Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan and Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abd Kadir.
The former is currently in Singapore for a bilateral meeting at the 12th Malaysia-Singapore Annual Leaders' Retreat while the latter is in Langkawi representing Malaysia at the Malaysia-Russia annual meeting.
The special Cabinet meeting was called after Entrepreneur and Cooperatives Development Minister Datuk Ewon Benedick, who is from Sabah, tendered his resignation from Cabinet over the weekend, over what he said was "disregard" by the country's Attorney General's Chambers (AGC) for Sabah's constitutional right to 40% of federal revenue derived from the state.
Ewon said, in a Facebook post, that he disagreed with the AGC's stance and that it would not be right for him to remain in Cabinet while holding an opposing view.
The only other Sabahan in the Federal Cabinet is Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Minister Datuk Armizan Mohd Ali, who said that he would definitely attend the meeting.
"Yes, I will be attending it in Putrajaya," Armizan said in a short text message.
Agriculture and Food Security Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Sabu - who first disclosed the meeting to the media - said it will be convened this evening.
"At 3.30pm in Putrajaya," he said.
The meeting is being watched closely because there is talk in Putrajaya of a potential shake-up. This is fuelled by the impending end of senatorships for two ministers and the recent resignation of another.
The Senate terms of Zambry and Trade and Industry Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz are set to expire in December, along with that of the Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Religious Affairs) Datuk Dr Mohd Na’im Mokhtar.
Last May, two ministers from Anwar's party PKR - Economy Minister Datuk Seri Rafizi Ramli and Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability (NRES) minister Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad - tendered their resignations.
Since then, Anwar appointed Second Finance Minister Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan as the acting Economy Minister and Plantation and Commodities Minister Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani as the acting NRES minister.
