Finally, KJ

by Mohsin Abdullah

FZ.COM/Shahrin Yahya

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  Khairy has finally made it into the Malaysian cabinet.

I'M SORRY I can't resist but to begin this piece like this. Who is KJ? The answer depends on who you ask and where you ask the question.

 

In PAS, KJ is Datuk Kamaruddin Jaafar, MP for Tumpat. In PKR, its Khalid Jaafar, who lost in Hulu Selangor in the recent general election. But the KJ of the hour must surely be Khairy Jamaluddin, Umno Youth chief and MP for Rembau.

 

So finally Khairy has made it into the Malaysian cabinet. Expected of course, as many believed Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak simply can't ignore the young Umno leader anymore. 

 

As we know, he missed the boat or rather was overlooked when Najib named his cabinet upon taking over from Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi in 2009. This is despite Khairy winning the Rembau seat in 2008 and the Umno Youth top post. 

 

If that wasn't bad enough, his deputy in Umno Youth Datuk Razali Ibrahim and also the man he had beaten in the Youth polls Datuk Mukhriz Mahathir leapfrogged him – apparently earning the trust of the PM as deputy ministers in the Najib administration.

 

And we all know the tirade and onslaught launched by former PM Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad. And of course, the many allegations and controversies. 

 

To cut a long story, Khairy has weathered the storm. Even his political foes and detractors acknowledge that he deserved a ministerial post, citing his loyalty to Umno when he was being sidelined and the number of times he responded in the name of the party in facing off the opposition and NGOs in debates and what not.

 

So now he's a minister. Of course the hows and whys are a plenty. But all that is for another day. The story now is the cabinet that Khairy is in. 

 

Minutes after Najib named his cabinet – live on national TV – I asked several analysts, political observers and commentators for their views. All of them mentioned Khairy first. As if to suggest that's the only bight spark in an otherwise "not exciting" cabinet line-up. I'm being polite here in using "not exciting".

 

"The cabinet is a recycled cabinet although there are new faces. To me, the inclusion of KJ is the only thing worth talking about," said a long-time observer who had served the government years ago. 

 

He went on to say: "And seen from an Umno political perspective, the PM finally acknowledged the need to have the Ketua Pemuda in the cabinet. And now that Khairy has position (as a minister), his footing in Umno is entrenched and his political base strengthened," he added, casting an eye on the Umno party polls in November. 

 

In short, pretenders to the Umno Youth crowd (should Khairy want to defend it, chances are he will and won't go for higher posts, at least for now) would think twice before mounting a challenge.  

 

An analyst agreed saying, "Yes, it's good for Khairy." But he also pointed this out: "Najib rewarded East Malaysia by giving them 13 cabinet posts (including Umno) and rewarded Umno with 18 cabinet posts (including Sabah).

 

Except for Khairy and technocrat Datuk Seri Abdul Wahid Omar, it's the same old same old. No exceptional faces. 

 

There was too much consideration given to rewarding those who gave victory to BN like Umno and East Malaysia.

 

Najib could have experimented by putting in new faces rather than Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan and Datuk Dr Maximus Ongkili and non-performers like Datuk Seri Anifah Aman, Datuk Seri Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah, Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein. And, what the heck is Datuk Seri Shahidan Kassim doing there?

 

To a political commentator, the cabinet "is disappointing coming from a PM said to be visionary and carrying out transformation". 

 

He also put down the decision to appoint the many old hands as ministers and deputy ministers – rattling a long list of names like "Hasan Malek, Mahadzir Khalid, Md Bashah, Tajuddin Rahman, Aziz Kaprawi".

 

And he took a jibe at the move in switching Datuk Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and Hishamuddin, where they take each other's ministry saying, "It's I go there, you come here." 

 

"This is not a balanced line-up but one which is accommodating, ambil hati (soothe the heart) and wanting to reward Sabah and Sarawak."

 

A strategist linked to the PM's Office admitted: "Yes, there's no 'wow' factor. Lots of attention was given to Sabah and Sarawak. I would rate the cabinet as ok only".

 

However, he said the exclusion of Selangor leaders even from Umno "can be tricky", not wanting to elaborate. Selangor Umno leader Datuk Noh Omar was dropped despite winning his federal seat in the May 5 election.

 

That's the cabinet Khairy finds himself in.

 

Said the analyst, "It's disappointing and unlikely to inspire confidence that things will change. One Khairy does not a summer make."

 

 

Mohsin Abdullah is a specialist writer at fz.com. He likes rojak. And nasi campur. And durians. Perhaps that's why he writes about this, that and everything else. Pretty much rojak and nasi campur. As for his writings, well, they can be like durians. Aromatic and delicious to some people, smelly and off-putting to others.