Prof: Not unusual for new PM to terminate previous political appointments

Prof Dr Awang Azman Awang Pawi

KUCHING (Dec 18): The termination of political appointments in government-linked corporations (GLCs) and statutory bodies is not something new or unusual in Malaysia, says a political analyst.

Assoc Prof Dr Awang Azman Awang Pawi said such practice is something that will usually be carried out by any new prime minister or government.

“This is not unusual. In fact, there is no law that prevents such changes.

“This is important to ensure that the new appointments are in line with the existing government’s policy and that there is no sabotage in the new government,” he said when contacted yesterday.

The research fellow at University of Malaya’s Centre for Democracy and Elections was asked to comment on Thursday’s move by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to terminate the services of all politically-appointed chairmen and board members of GLCs, statutory bodies and state investment funds, with immediate effect.

The move was ostensibly a follow through of Pakatan Harapan’s election campaign promise to dismantle political patronage.

Awang Azman pointed to the change of political appointees during the era of Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak as clear examples of each of them wanting their own ‘team’ in GLCs and other state-owned bodies during their respective tenure as prime minister.

He said in the current scenario, political appointees from PAS, Bersatu and other parties will almost certainly all be replaced by appointments from the parties that form the unity government.

Local think tank Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs (Ideas) had previously raised alarm about the increasing number of political appointments within federal statutory bodies under former prime minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob.

Over 230 such appointments were said to have been made from August 2021 to September this year, of which 119 were new while 115 were retained from the previous administration led by Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.

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