Saifuddin Abdullah
KUCHING: The Pakatan Harapan federal government under the leadership of Tun Dr Mahathir Mohammad will focus on downsizing the cabinet.
Therefore, there will be no second deputy prime minister (DPM II) post which MPs from states of Sabah and Sarawak have hoped for.
This was disclosed yesterday by Pakatan Harapan secretary general Saifuddin Abdullah when he clarified on the coalition’s 14th general election manifesto which was made public since March.
He told reporters that such was his understanding even though it should be within the prerogative of the Prime Minister, Dr Mahathir.
“This is something that is really up to the Prime Minister, but to the best of my understanding, the Harapan presidential council is not pushing for a DPM II,” he said when asked about this during a press conference at the Bersatu headquarters in Kuala Lumpur.
Elaborating that this was in line with Harapan’s promise to trim the number of cabinet ministers, he said: “The main idea is the cabinet of the Harapan government, as we promised, will be smaller than that of the previous administration (under former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak).”
Pakatan Harapan took over the federal capital Putrajaya from Barisan Nasional, which had been running the country for over 60 years, after winning the 14th general election on May 9.
In a related development yesterday, Sarawak Democratic Action Party (DAP) Youth publicity secretary Abdul Aziz Isa urged Dr Mahathir to appoint a second deputy prime minister who will be solely responsible for Sabah and Sarawak affairs, in order to uplift the economic status of East Malaysians.
Despite not making it into the eventual manifesto, Harapan had previously promised a deputy prime minister from East Malaysia in its Sabah manifesto in September last year.
Meanwhile, Saifuddin assured that discussions to make lawmakers from the East Malaysian states federal cabinet ministers are on-going.
“We will, of course, include Sabah and Sarawak (in the federal cabinet). In the context of Sabah, the discussions are definitely (being held) with Warisan,” he clarified.
Thirteen cabinet ministers were sworn in before the Yang Di-Pertuan Agong Sultan Muhammad V on Monday.
Last week, Saifuddin took to Twitter to say that Sabahan and Sarawakian lawmakers would be represented in the ‘second batch’ of ministers.
Malaysiakini news portal reported that at least another 12 federal ministers have yet to be announced.
On April 30, Penang Chief Minister and DAP secretary general Lim Guan Eng was quoted as saying that Sarawak DAP chairman Chong Chieng Jen would be made minister if he is elected by the people and Pakatan Harapan took over Putrajaya.
Chong, who is Kota Sentosa assemblyman, went on to win and retain Stampin for the Pakatan Harapan fold after beating Datuk Dr Sim Kui Hian, who is Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) president, on May 9.
Lim said the Pakatan Harapan federal government would want a representative each from Sabah and Sarawak in the cabinet.
“If Dr Sim is an MP, will he be a federal cabinet member? If Ah Jen (Chong) is elected as the MP and we win Putrajaya, as the SG (secretary general of DAP), I shall recommend to Dr M (Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad) that Ah Jen be appointed as a cabinet member,” he said at a DAP public talk held at the RH Plaza town square here back then.