On December 2, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim announced the composition of his Cabinet, which now consists of 28 ministers, down from 31 ministers under the previous administration. During a news conference on the newly appointed Cabinet, Anwar touted the new cabinet as a “cabinet of a unity government,” emphasizing its multi-coalition makeup. Ministers were primarily chosen from the three main coalitions that make up the unity government: 15 ministers from Pakatan Harapan (PH), six ministers from Barisan Nasional (BN), and five ministers from Gabungan Parti Sarawak’ (GPS). A minister from Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) and an independent minister were also announced. On December 9, 27 deputy ministers were announced and sworn in the next day, completing the Cabinet under the Anwar administration. PH holds 13 deputy minister positions while BN and GPS both hold six positions. GRS and Warisan each have one position respectively.
PM Anwar appointed himself as Minister of Finance, seeking to restore investor confidence. Anwar previously served as Minister of Finance from 1991 to 1998. However, the move has also drawn criticism from some activists and members of civil society due to the potential for abuse of public funds. BN Chairman and UMNO President Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and GPS’ Fadillah Yusof will serve as Deputy Prime Ministers as well as Minister of Rural and Regional Development and Minister of Plantation and Commodities respectively. Tengku Zafrul Aziz from BN, who served as Minister of Finance under the previous administration, will serve as Minister of International Trade and Industry (MITI). In addition, Datuk Seri Isham Ishak (former deputy lead negotiator for Malaysia in the CPTPP) has been appointed the Secretary General of MITI. BN Secretary-General Zambry Abdul Kadir will serve as Minister of Foreign Affairs. The composition of the Cabinet has been viewed as a major effort to ensure political stability but has drawn mixed reactions due to ongoing court cases of some of the new ministers. On December 19, PM Anwar Ibrahim’s motion of confidence was passed in Parliament, solidifying support behind the new unity government following the 15th General Election in November.
