Reshuffling on the cards?

SOON, according to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, a new Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Minister will be named.

The Prime Minister has said he has a suitable candidate in mind to fill the post, which has been vacant for four months since the death of Amanah deputy president Datuk Seri Salahuddin Ayub in July.

With the public perception that the cost of living has skyrocketed, filling the vacant post is essential. The feeling on the ground seems to be that the Prime Minister is not serious about “Mahal dah ni (it is now expensive)!”, a play on Anwar’s Malaysia *Madani concept.

Why was this vital post left vacant so long? Well, the talk is that it had to do with Amanah’s internal politics.

Amanah president Datuk Seri Mohamad Sabu favours Amanah vice-president and Deputy Defence Minister Adly Zahari for the post. However, a faction in the party wants Amanah vice-president Datuk Seri Dr Mujahid Yusof Rawa to be made a minister.

Anwar, it seems, has his own idea of who in Amanah should become a minister. However, he can’t be perceived to be interfering in the Amanah party polls, which will be held next month. If Adly or Mujahid is made a minister, it will give them an advantage going into the party elections.

Reportedly, the faction supporting Mujahid has big ambitions for the Senator who lost his Parit Buntar parliamentary seat in the 15th General Election in November 2022.

You can hear hints of those ambitions in a recent statement Mujahid made saying he is ready for bigger responsibilities in the party should he obtain the highest number of votes in party elections. He’s now vice-president; what constitutes a bigger responsibility? President? Deputy president?

The election of Amanah’s top leaders, like president and deputy president, is similar to DAP’s process. The party will elect 27 central committee members who would then come to a consensual decision on the party’s top five leaders.

If enough pro-Mujahid politicians are elected to the central committee, the former Religious Affairs minister (under the first Pakatan Harapan administration in 2018) can go for the Amanah president or deputy president post.

Amanah currently has two ministers in Anwar’s Cabinet – the Agriculture and Food Security Minister’s post is held by its president, and the Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Minister post had gone to the late deputy president.

But don’t be surprised if there is a Cabinet reshuffle and Mat Sabu – as Mohamad is popularly known – returns to the Defence Minister post he held in 2018.

In the Pakatan government in 2018, Amanah had five ministerial posts. Now, it only has two. I’m sure some of its other leaders who have tasted power want to be in the Cabinet now.

Adly, a former Melaka chief minister, is said to be happy with his vice-president post and would want Mat Sabu to remain president and a popular Ama-nah politician, though not Muja-hid, to become deputy president.

When the Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Minister vacancy is filled, will it come with a Cabinet reshuffle?

I believe Anwar will indeed do some reshuffling. But reshuffling is a precarious political juggling act.

Without Umno’s support – specifically that of Deputy Prime Minister and Umno president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s – Anwar would not have become PM. And Umno is demanding more minister posts, I heard. It is reportedly eyeing the Finance Minister II, Home Minister, and Federal Territory Minister posts. Or finding a minister’s post for Pahang Mentri Besar and Umno vice-president Datuk Seri Wan Rosdy Wan Ismail if possible.

The threat of an Umno pullout if its ministerial demands are not granted has been mitigated – a bit – by four Perikatan Nasional MPs from Bersatu declaring support for the Prime Minister. Also, is it politically wise for Ahmad Zahid to align his self-interest with the “enemy” Perikatan?

If there is a Cabinet reshuffle, when would it happen? Speculation has arisen around three possible moments:

One is after 2024 Budget is passed, which is expected to happen tomorrow.

The second is after Amanah party polls, which will be held during its national convention on Dec 24 and 25. The argument for this timing is that Anwar and Amanah would know by then who the party’s president, deputy president, or vice president is that needs to be included in the Cabinet.

The third moment for a reshuffle could be after the Sultan of Johor is elevated to King on Jan 31. The logic is that the new King will want a Cabinet that he is comfortable working with.

Soon, to quote the Prime Minister, we will have a Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Minister. And probably a reshuffled Cabinet.

*Madani is an acronym for the government’s over-arching policy that embraces six core values: keMampanan (sustainability), KesejAhteraan (prosperity), Daya cipta (innovation), hormAt (respect), keyakiNan (trust) and Ihsan (compassion).