PM’s exclusive right to appoint Cabinet — Fatimah
The appointment of ministers in the federal Cabinet is the prerogative of the Prime Minister as provided in the Federal Constitution, said Minister for Women, Childhood and Community Wellbeing Development Dato Sri Fatimah Abdullah.
She said the right to do so needs to be respected and agreed to by all parties as part of the formation of the unity government, as advised by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong AlSultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin AlMustafa Billah Shah.
“Therefore, we hope Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim is given the wisdom to carry out his duties in selecting Cabinet members for this unity government.
“May God grant him the wisdom so that the Cabinet that will be formed later can help him take Malaysia to a higher level,” she told reporters when met after the symbolic handover ceremony of the Rotary Pan Borneo Joint Club Project here yesterday.
Fatimah said she acknowledged the people’s concern on national security, unity and racial harmony throughout the 15th General Election (GE15) and prior to the Prime Minister’s appointment. For that reason, she said it is imperative to focus on the issue of unity to ensure that the people are united.
“No matter what your political or religious beliefs are, don’t judge one another. Instead, we all need to unite as a team to ensure that Malaysia can be great again,” she asserted.
Anwar in his maiden press conference as prime minister last Thursday confirmed that his unity government would consist of Pakatan Harapan (PH), Barisan Nasional (BN), Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) and Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS).
He added the government was also supported by Members of Parliament for Warisan, Muda and Parti Bangsa Malaysia (PBM). In GE15, PH won 82 seats, followed by PN, which decided to play the opposition role with 73, BN (30), GPS (23) and GRS (six).