Nurul Izzah: You don't need to be a minister to bring change

INTERVIEW | Permatang Pauh MP Nurul Izzah Anwar has come a long way from being the 18-year-old 'princess' of Reformasi in 1998.

In the 20 years since, she has been a prolific activist, a three-term MP, and two-term PKR vice-president.

However, while many believe she is deserving and qualified enough to take the next step and become a minister, Nurul Izzah feels differently.

After musing over her past struggles as an activist, her current challenges revamping the Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) programme, and pushing for improvements on social welfare, Nurul Izzah told Malaysiakini that being in cabinet is not all that important.

"Honestly, what (my experience) has thought me is that you don't need a cabinet position to exact change.

"That will be my message to young people out there. I felt empowered at 18, that I could do anything, that I will not allow fear to dictate my actions.

"Now that I'm much older, I think that's the thing I want to remember most," she said during an interview in Parliament last week.

Nurul Izzah said she had thought long and hard about this, and concluded that the only benefit to a cabinet position was the ability to implement many programmes and policies that are crucial and can impact people's lives.

But for now, she is content with playing an outside role.

"All I can do now is to push my ideas, and make sure the ministers and ministries do their jobs and mirror the aspirations of the people.

"And to that end that would make me very happy, a happy mama to Safiyah and Harith."

Her children also happy that their mother is not a minister, Nurul Izzah added, as she will not be as busy as their grandmother and Deputy Prime Minister Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail.

The following are excerpts from Malaysiakini's exclusive interview, which has been edited for brevity, grammar, and accuracy.

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Malaysiakini: How is it being on the other side of the aisle?

Nurul Izzah: Still very surreal in many ways, but its a testament to the rakyat's power. We were just across the aisle the last few months before the elections, and before you know it, we're in government.

It humbles me, much as I like to say I expected to be more excited about it. But it really humbles me because of the sheer responsibility and expectation that has been placed on our shoulders.

We have a clear-cut agenda, but we have our work cut out for us, and that's why the august House should rightly be rightly exalted as a place where key issues for the rakyat should be debated. That's my purpose, and that's my focus. 

I would also like to see a nice balance between opposition and government backbenchers. We need to have real parliamentary democracy at work, we need to make sure there are sufficient checks of the possible excesses of any government.

So yes, excited, but very humbled and concerned at some level. I'm a worrier of sorts!

What are you concerned about?

When you win, in Islam, your responsibility or amanah in assuming public office is huge.

It is not about the glamour, it is not about the 'yang berhormat' attached to it. You're there for a reason.

Will you be voting based on your conscience?

Well, first and foremost it has to be my conscience. At the same time, we're respectful of the guiding principles of the parameters set out for me because I joined PKR, I'm a vice-president and contested under its ticket. And we are part of Pakatan Harapan.

I will always try to align the party position with my conscience because you can only survive, you can only live based on your credibility, based on your ability to follow through a clear sense of justice, based on a moral compass.

That's how I live my life. That's why I joined the party.

If it deviates from that, of course, you have to voice out, and I think that's why Harapan is resolved to follow through the agenda for reform. That has to be our guiding principle.

People keep asking me, 'Aren't you worried you'll turn out just like BN?'

Yeah, but as long as we have clearcut democratic institutions that are going to be the bulwark against possible transgressions, insya Allah we'll be fine.

If the government proposes a law that is against your principles, will you vote against it?

It's quite clear-cut, of course. I didn't fight for the last two decades just to be subservient to any person or leader that doesn't adhere to the rule of law. -Mkini