MCA Youth: Anwar’s cabinet reshuffle fails to deliver on ‘lean cabinet’ promise

MCA Youth said the cabinet reshuffle by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim did not deliver on the promise to trim a bloated government.

(NST) – In a statement today, MCA Youth deputy chairman Mike Chong Yew Chuan highlighted that the splitting of ministries, like Digital Communications and Natural Resources, Environment, and Climate Change, contradicts earlier commitments to maintain a lean cabinet, as promised when Anwar assumed office.

“In any case, in this latest cabinet reshuffle, certain ministries such as the Ministry of Digital Communications and the Ministry of Natural Resources, Environment and Climate Change have been sliced into two.

“This detracts from what the Prime Minister said when he took office. The rakyat are left disappointed as the additional Ministries also contravene the Pakatan Harapan promises to reduce a bloated Cabinet.

Chong also added that in an earlier call for action, he had raised concerns about the performance of certain ministers, urging the Prime Minister to consider their removal.

“Earlier on, I had proposed that several ministers whose performance were not up to standards be removed. This was not intended to humiliate the said ministers, but to entreat the Prime Minister to consider seriously the removal of under-performing ministers.

“In any case, in this reshuffle, certain ministers and deputy ministers who had previously performed poorly still remain in office. It is my hope that since they have been given a new lease of life, they will improve from their past performance and execution capabilities, and enhance the formulation of Ministry policies and the efficiency of policy implementation.

Yesterday, Pas deputy president Datuk Seri Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man voiced a similar opinion, saying that the Prime Minister’s promises to reduce the size of the cabinet and expenses when he took over the government last year, was just empty rhetoric.