Latest news with #NurulIzzah
Malay Mail
15 hours ago
- Business
- Malay Mail
PKR Youth chief calls for clear nepotism definition, insists Nurul Izzah earned post through votes rather than Anwar's influence
KUALA LUMPUR, May 31 – PKR Youth chief Muhammad Kamil Abdul Munim has urged the party to clarify the meaning of nepotism, after Nurul Izzah Anwar's victory in the party's recent internal election. Kamil, who also serves as Anwar's political secretary in the Finance Ministry, said if family ties alone constituted nepotism, then many political parties would be equally guilty, not just PKR. 'All parties, without exception, have this. So, it's unfair to label only this case as nepotism while ignoring others. This is a malicious propaganda campaign meant to smear PKR,' he was quoted saying by Malaysiakini. 'The continuous nepotism attacks against PKR are mischievous attempts by political rivals, especially the opposition, to create negative perceptions.' Kamil said that true nepotism involves misuse of power for personal gain, such as awarding contracts or posts to relatives or cronies, which was not the case here. He stressed that Nurul Izzah was chosen by party members through an open election, not installed by Anwar or the party leadership, highlighting her long record of activism and public service. 'Nurul Izzah has been active from the start. She fought for justice, ran in elections, received public support, became an MP, and was elected and supported by party members, all through democratic processes,' he told the news outfit. Nurul Izzah recently won the deputy president post, defeating incumbent Datuk Seri Rafizi Ramli. Her father, Anwar, is the party president. 'I think the nepotism issue is outdated. It was played decades ago, then faded,' he reportedly said. 'Now with this election, it's being raised again. This is nothing more than an attempt to create a negative perception among the public.'
Yahoo
15 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
PKR Youth chief calls for clear nepotism definition, insists Nurul Izzah earned post through votes rather than Anwar's influence
KUALA LUMPUR, May 31 – PKR Youth chief Muhammad Kamil Abdul Munim has urged the party to clarify the meaning of nepotism, after Nurul Izzah Anwar's victory in the party's recent internal election. Kamil, who also serves as Anwar's political secretary in the Finance Ministry, said if family ties alone constituted nepotism, then many political parties would be equally guilty, not just PKR. 'All parties, without exception, have this. So, it's unfair to label only this case as nepotism while ignoring others. This is a malicious propaganda campaign meant to smear PKR,' he was quoted saying by Malaysiakini. 'The continuous nepotism attacks against PKR are mischievous attempts by political rivals, especially the opposition, to create negative perceptions.' Kamil said that true nepotism involves misuse of power for personal gain, such as awarding contracts or posts to relatives or cronies, which was not the case here. He stressed that Nurul Izzah was chosen by party members through an open election, not installed by Anwar or the party leadership, highlighting her long record of activism and public service. 'Nurul Izzah has been active from the start. She fought for justice, ran in elections, received public support, became an MP, and was elected and supported by party members, all through democratic processes,' he told the news outfit. Nurul Izzah recently won the deputy president post, defeating incumbent Datuk Seri Rafizi Ramli. Her father, Anwar, is the party president. 'I think the nepotism issue is outdated. It was played decades ago, then faded,' he reportedly said. 'Now with this election, it's being raised again. This is nothing more than an attempt to create a negative perception among the public.'
Malaysian Reserve
a day ago
- Politics
- Malaysian Reserve
Friday Jottings: Giving immunity to nepotism
IT did not come as a surprise that Nurul Izzah Anwar (picture) succeeded in her quest to become Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) deputy president, ousting incumbent Rafizi Ramli. Cynics and sceptics had a field day, declaring that PKR is now a family-planned party and quipping that Madani, the government's philosophy of rule, is actually a Malay acronym that represents the triumvirate rule of mother, father and daughter. In essence, critics do not accept Nurul Izzah's political prowess as the determinant in the race for the deputy presidency, but rather to the fact that she is the daughter of Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, the party president, and Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, the former president and current advisor. To them, Nurul Izzah's ascension is nepotism. Their criticisms became more acerbic, as they were of the opinion that Nurul Izzah and her family were deeply hypocritical having been extremely opposed to nepotism when they were in the Opposition. Advocates and apologists of Nurul Izzah and Anwar, however, tried to deflect the nepotism label by arguing that when the Anwar family denounced nepotism while in the Opposition, the criticism was directed at the economic gains enjoyed by the children and wives of sitting prime ministers, not political appointments. These supporters of Anwar and Nurul Izzah took their case all the way back to 1998, when Suharto was toppled by the Indonesian Reformasi (reformation) movement, whose battle cry was KKN – Korupsi, Kolusi dan Nepotisma (Corruption, Collusion and Nepotism). Anwar's and Nurul Izzah's reformasi movement adopted the Indonesian uprising wholesale, including the KKN slogan, and directed theirs criticism at Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, then PM, accusing him of favouring his children and cronies in financial and business dealings. Dr Mahathir disputed the allegations and instead revealed public documents which showed Anwar's family and close associates held substantial shares and secured other financial gains while he was the Finance Minister. Despite that, Anwar's supporters chose to ignore the revelations and continued to level accusations against Dr Mahathir. After Dr Mahathir stepped down in 2003, accusation of nepotism and cronyism re-emerged during the second term of the late Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, in particular, targeting his son-in-law Khairy Jamaluddin, who became the UMNO Youth chief and was accused of having the ambition to become PM before turning 40. Apart from that, Anwar and the reformasi movement directed the nepotism and cronyism label at the infamous four 'K', the initials of Abdullah's son and alleged cronies, as well as the fourth-floor boys, referring to the young officers occupying the fourth floor of the PM's office. It didn't stop when Datuk Seri Mohd Najib Razak took over the PM's office, but this time, his wife, Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor, became a popular target, apart from Najib himself, for their alleged complicity in the scandalous 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) case. The point is that accusations of nepotism and cronyism against his political enemies have consistently been Anwar's 'weapon' of choice. In the late 1990s, nepotism was primarily defined as economic gains for the children of the PM, by the first decade of the new millennium, it had evolved into a combination of political and economic nepotism. Lest advocates of Nurul Izzah forget that, Anwar's reformasi movement was loudly denouncing nepotism when Khairy became the UMNO Youth chief despite Khairy being only the son-in-law. Hence, the justification that Anwar and the reformasi movement's battle against nepotism focused solely on economic gains within the family does not hold water. In fact, they should be more concerned about the political position as it is actually the power to commit 'economic nepotism' apart from creating a political dynasty. And if advocates and apologists of Nurul Izzah are unaware, in the history of contemporary Malaysia, there has never been a sitting PM whose children immediately succeeded him. There was Abdullah's case, and even then, Khairy was son-in-law and only made it to the UMNO Youth chief post. Dr Mahathir, much maligned by Anwar and his supporters, did not allow his children to get anywhere near the political throne. Mukhriz was a deputy minister and later became a mentri besar (MB) when Dr Mahathir retired. When he returned as the PM the second time around, Mukhriz was stuck as an MB. There were talks that Mukhriz had then wanted to request for a federal post, obviously allowing them to get closer to the throne, but Dr Mahathir never entertained the idea. After stepping down the second time, and when Anwar started to regurgitate his accusations that Dr Mahathir had favoured his children during his first tenure as PM, the latter decided not to let such accusations go unchallenged and sued Anwar for libel. The case has been pending for a few years, and to date, there has yet to be any proof shown to the public or the courts regarding Dr Mahathir's alleged crimes. Regardless, the whole episode demonstrates how much nepotism in whatever form, perceived or real, is abhorred by both Anwar and Dr Mahathir. Ironically, Dr Mahathir had upped the ante to debunk accusations of him indulging in nepotism, hence the suit against Anwar, while Anwar seems nonchalant about the accusations of him doing so with regards to Nurul Izzah becoming his heir apparent. Anwar and Nurul Izzah's supporters are bending over backwards to justify nepotism by inventing caveats and definitions of what they consider to constitute nepotism. Not to be ignored are the casualties from Anwar and Nurul Izzah's nepotistic venture, whether directly or otherwise, which led Rafizi and another minister, Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad, to resign their Cabinet posts. On one hand, their resignations are only proper given that they were in the Cabinet by virtue of representing their party. Now that they have lost their party posts, they cannot continue to enjoy the perks of being party members. However, the journey prior to this, Rafizi, in particular, had publicly denounced the party election process and condemned the way those on Nurul Izzah's side had ganged up to oust him. Obviously, the lead to these efforts was Anwar, though mostly implied and not stated. By that, Rafizi's resignation from the Cabinet does not equal principle. He would only be principled if he quit the party. Amid all this, nepotism is being normalised, another issue that has risen, which seems to distance Anwar further from his promised reforms – his request for legal immunity over a civil suit from his former aide. The immunity he sought has snowballed into a major controversy, diminishing his leadership credentials and unmasking him further. And yet, both he and his supporters seem as indifferent to this issue as they are to nepotism. Maybe, nepotism to them, is simply family bonding. Shamsul Akmar is an editor at The Malaysian Reserve.
Free Malaysia Today
3 days ago
- Business
- Free Malaysia Today
Not enough ‘quality' PKR MPs to replace Rafizi, Nik Nazmi as ministers, says analyst
An analyst says Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim faces a daunting task in choosing replacements for the ministerial posts which will be left vacant by Pandan MP Rafizi Ramli and Setiawangsa MP Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad. (Bernama pic) PETALING JAYA : PKR does not have enough capable MPs to fill the ministerial posts left vacant by Pandan MP Rafizi Ramli and Setiawangsa MP Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad, according to an analyst. Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman's Chin Yee Mun said that with a long list of PKR MPs in hand, it would not be too difficult a task for Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim to find replacements for Rafizi, who holds the economy portfolio, and Nik Nazmi, the natural resources and environmental sustainability portfolio. 'He may have the quantity but not sufficient people with the quality to become ministers, particularly to replace Rafizi, who holds the economy portfolio. Anwar will have a tough time finding suitable replacements for both of them. 'The only way out is to reshuffle the Cabinet and this may enable him to appoint the more junior MPs from his party to hold 'less heavy' ministry portfolios and let the more senior ones take over bigger portfolios,' he told FMT. Yesterday, Nik Nazmi said he was resigning from his ministerial post after failing to defend his PKR vice-presidency at the party's central leadership polls held last week. He was a running mate of Rafizi, who lost the PKR deputy president's post to Nurul Izzah Anwar. Asked about the daunting task ahead for Anwar, Chin said that many in PKR were inexperienced at helming ministries. 'Becoming a minister is not about shouting slogans or leading street demonstrations or posting messages on social media. It is about handling urgent and important matters of the nation. 'The minister will also have to manage his or her ministry and deal with government bureaucracy. In general, most PKR MPs do not have such experience,' he said. He also said it was too late in the day to train the PKR MPs for ministership since the government had only about two-and-a-half years left in Putrajaya. 'There is no time to learn, they must deliver.' Between a rock and a hard place Chin said Anwar, who is the PKR president, could consider appointing his deputy, Nurul Izzah, or even his wife, Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, to the Cabinet. 'But it would be unwise to do so. He will be accused of nepotism, an accusation that has emerged after the party elections (after Nurul Izzah won the No 2 post). He can't afford it. 'And if he were to appoint someone from outside his party, he would have to answer to his supporters from within his party,' he said. The only thing Anwar could do now was to reduce the impact of his next step by opting for a Cabinet shakeup. 'This will at least satisfy other political parties within his unity government,' Chin said. Ahmad Fauzi Abdul Hamid of Universiti Sains Malaysia said Anwar must tread carefully and avoid any perception of favouring Nurul Izzah in this matter, especially in the wake of her bitter contest against Rafizi for the deputy presidency. 'Wong Chen and Amirudin Shari as safe bets Fauzi suggested Subang MP Wong Chen and Selangor menteri besar Amirudin Shari as suitable candidates to take over the ministerial portfolios held by Rafizi and Nik Nazmi. He said Wong Chen stood out for his articulate voice in the Dewan Rakyat and consistent, well-reasoned press statements, which reflected his strength in policy and communication. 'Although Wong Chen is identifiably from Rafizi's camp in PKR, Anwar cannot afford to alienate Rafizi's faction, lest the rift between the two camps becomes irreconcilable, threatening PKR's position as a leading party within Pakatan Harapan, despite having fewer MPs than DAP. 'Amirudin, who hails from Nurul Izzah's camp, has managed Selangor fairly well despite his relatively young age of 45. (But) a replacement then needs to be found to fill the Selangor menteri besar's post,' he said. New senatorships a 'very, very bad' idea Asked if Anwar should consider appointing senators to take over from Rafizi and Nik Nazmi. Fauzi said that it would be an ill-conceived plan. 'It would be bad. We already have Saifuddin Nasution Ismail as a senator. It would be preferable to choose from the people's choice first, and thus, even Nurul Izzah shouldn't be hurriedly made a senator when there are other alternatives among PKR's MPs,' he said. University of Tasmania's James Chin was on the same page, saying that it would be a 'desperate' move on Anwar's part that would send a 'very, very bad signal'. 'The signal he would be sending is that he cannot find enough representatives from within PKR to take up the positions,' he said. Chin said the 'senatorship route' was meant for those who either did not wish to be frontline politicians or were unable to contest in elections for some reason.
Free Malaysia Today
3 days ago
- Business
- Free Malaysia Today
No discussion on Cabinet reshuffle, says Anwar
The Prime Minister's Office said yesterday that Anwar Ibrahim had received the resignation letters of Rafizi Ramli and Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad. PUTRAJAYA : Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim says there has been no discussion on a Cabinet reshuffle, following the resignations of two ministers yesterday. 'Not yet. Not yet. They are still on break. We cannot replace them while they are on break,' he told reporters at the monthly assembly of the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) here today when asked if the Cabinet would be reshuffled. While Anwar did not clarify who he was referring to by 'they', the PMO yesterday confirmed that he had received the resignation letters of Rafizi Ramli and Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad and approved their applications for leave. Rafizi and Nik Nazmi announced their resignations as economy minister and natural resources and environmental sustainability minister yesterday following their defeat at the recent PKR central leadership elections. Rafizi previously said party leaders who lose internal elections should make way for those who have been given a new mandate, adding that this was the practice in countries that upheld democratic principles. Rafizi lost the PKR deputy presidency to Anwar's daughter, Nurul Izzah Anwar, while Nik Nazmi failed to defend his PKR vice-presidency. They will officially vacate their ministerial posts on June 17 and July 4, respectively. Following their resignations, political analysts told Bernama that Anwar would need to reshuffle his Cabinet to ensure that he has a team fully committed to leading the country for the remainder of the term. Sivamurugan Pandian of Universiti Sains Malaysia said there was the possibility of other ministers or deputy ministers from Rafizi's faction in PKR also quitting their posts. He said Anwar would also need to consider the status of investment, trade and industry minister Tengku Zafrul Aziz, whose term as a senator ends in December.
