[UPDATED] Anwar unveils 28-member Cabinet with 15 ministers from PH, 6 BN, 5 GPS, 1 GRS

Editor’s note: This story has been updated to correct the composition of main political coalitions in Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s new Cabinet. An earlier version misstated the Sabah’s representation.

By Karen Bong and Ling Hui

KUCHING, Dec 2: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has today unveiled his new 28-member Cabinet with 15 ministers from Pakatan Harapan (PH), six from Barisan Nasional (BN), five from Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) and one from Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS).

GPS’ Dato Sri Fadillah Yusof and BN’s Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi have been appointed the Deputy Prime Ministers. In addition, Fadillah will also oversee the Plantation and Commodity portfolio while Zahid will take up the Urban and Regional Development portfolio.

The only exception is Dato Dr Mohd Na’im Mokhtar who has been appointed the Minister of Religion. He is not politically affiliated and is currently a Senator and the Chief Judge of the Department of Syariah Judiciary Malaysia.

However, deputy ministers were not named in the list of Cabinet ministers, in which Anwar explained will be announced at a later date.

Among the key appointments are Anwar himself who oversees the Finance Ministry while former Finance Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz will serve as Minister of International Trade and Industry.

From the Borneo bloc, the key appointments from GPS named are Dato Sri Alexander Nanta Linggi (Minister of Works), Dato Sri Nancy Shukri (Minister of Women, Family and Community Development), Dato Sri Tiong King Sing (Minister of Tourism), and Datuk Aaron Ago Dagang (Minister of National Unity).

As for GRS, Datuk Armizan Mohd Ali is appointed the Minister in Prime Minister’s Department (Sabah and Sarawak).

Sabah also has another representative through Datuk Ewon Benedick from United Progressive Kinabalu Organisation (UPKO), which is a component of PH, and he will be in charge of the Cooperatives and Entrepreneurship portfolio.

As promised, it is a leaner Cabinet, down from three than that of his predecessor Datuk Patinggi Ismail Sabri Yaakob with 31 ministers.

Anwar said he will be holding a special meeting with every Cabinet minister on Monday (Dec 5) to set the rules and guidelines on the way to manage their respective ministries as well as to introduce the direction in carrying out their duties.

“We want to get rid of any suspicion of the possibility of a waste of government funds, corruption, and the abuse of power.

“I have stressed about good governance as well as measures to be taken to reduce the burden on the people, while the main focus remains to strengthen and improve the economy,” he told a press conference at Putrajaya which was streamed live through Astro Awani tonight.

The cabinet is expected to be sworn in tomorrow (Dec 3) before Yang di-Pertuan Agong (YDPA) Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah.

Here is the list of cabinet members under the unity government:

— DayakDaily