EXCLUSIVE | This time last year, Malaysia went to the polls and delivered an unexpected outcome.
While in 2018, the Pakatan Harapan coalition unseated the long-ruling BN administration, the Madani government has been a gathering of unlikely bedfellows.
Aside from throwing up the combination of erstwhile rivals like Umno and PKR, DAP, and MCA, it also thrusted several first-time parliamentarians into the front lines as ministers.
Like Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek, Dr Zaliha Mustafa found herself appointed to head a key ministry.
Plucked from seeming obscurity to replace the then-incumbent Natrah Ismail as PKR’s candidate in Sekijang, she managed to defeat candidates from Umno, Bersatu, Warisan, and Pejuang to emerge victorious.
It is to be noted that Natrah passed away on Nov 2.
A medical doctor who is now occupying the ultimate hot seat, Zaliha recalled how she got started in politics.
“I started to understand politics because of what happened to (Prime Minister) Anwar Ibrahim when he was sacked in 1998 as deputy prime minister.
“That was the starting point where there was the mass movement of the people (to protest this). At that time, I didn’t have any family members that had put their feet in politics but some of them are Umno members.
“What happened to Anwar really struck me. I haven't been to any other political parties, so I hope PKR will be the first and last for me. I think it’s one party that is unique, multi-racial, and can appeal to all races and religions, whether you are from Sabah or Sarawak,” she told Malaysiakini, in an interview held in conjunction with her first year as a minister.
Speaking of PKR, Zaliha said members learn to respect each other’s beliefs and push for changes accordingly.
“And of course, the push for Reformasi lah, the changes that we believe in.
“I started early at the height of Reformasi movement. At that time, I was still practising and there were not many professionals who really wanted to go into politics at that time.
“But I made a choice due to my belief and missions championed by PKR.
“Both my husband (Dr Ahmad Adzlan) and I are doctors, and we have our own clinic. So we thought one of us could run around while the other maintained the practice,” she said.
The couple have four children, and Zaliha acknowledged that none of them are inclined towards politics or medicine.
Speaking of her career in the party, Zaliha said it was called Parti Keadilan Nasional (PKN) in the past.
“When I first had a leadership post in the party, it was not yet PKR. It was before the merger. So I was appointed Johor Baru PKN Women’s chief.
“At the time, there were no elections in the party. Back then, whoever wanted a position, just took it.
“But I gradually increased my knowledge of politics and how to be a leader. I believe strongly in consultation and making decisions based on data, which comes from my training. Between 2005 and 2007, I became the first lady to lead a state chapter of PKR.”
Zaliha’s first electoral contest was in the 2004 general election for the Tanjung Puteri state seat. However, she was trounced by Umno’s Ali Mohamed.
In the 2008 general election, she lost the Gelang Patah seat to MCA’s Tan Ah Eng.
“Though I didn’t win the 2008 polls, it was a great success for PKR because we managed to get 43 percent of the popular votes, and reduced the winner’s majority from 31,666 to around only 8,000,” she recalled.
Later, Zaliha took a break after falling ill before returning to active politics in 2013.
The Sekijang MP mentioned that she helped Fuziah Salleh (deputy domestic trade and costs of living minister) in 2013 to secure the Kuantan parliamentary seat and later, helped Akmal Nasir (deputy local government development minister) for Johor Bahru in 2018.
“When we won federal power in 2018, former deputy prime minister Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail hired me as her political secretary, so I have been learning about politics and governance behind the scenes all the while,” said Zaliha.
Sheraton Move and dejection
However, when the Pakatan Harapan government was dislodged via the Sheraton Move in February 2020, Zaliha acknowledged that she felt it was all over.
As such, she returned to Johor to continue with her medical practice.
“I really thought, okay, no more of this. When Anwar called me over to take Natrah’s place (Sekijang), I had been focusing on Tanjung Piai. I asked myself … is this for real?
“It was really a lot of hard work because I hadn’t been working in the area before this and Sekinjang is a Malay belt area.
“Almost 60 percent of the people there are Malays and there are five Felda areas in my constituency - and I was running against four Malay male candidates.
“In a month, I really pushed hard. Understanding the demography, the issues, and the concerns of the people there. The big guns of the party like Anwar and (PKR deputy president) Rafizi Ramli went down to help me with the campaign. At the end of the day, we won!”
When she was named health minister, she knew that the demands would be high and challenges would be many.
“It’s very challenging and requires a lot of hard work. People expect a lot from you, and very quickly too. But I think we managed to resolve quite a lot of things and come out with lots of new policies and I’m looking forward to the next four years.”
Touching on the reforms for her ministry, Zaliha emphasised the need to make decisions based on consultations.
Elaborating, she said the officers in her ministry were subject matter experts and it was important for them to be on board when it came to decision-making.
“I would say the people in my ministry are the subject matter experts. This is where I need to get them on board to understand the issues and get consults from them. Of course, I have the ultimate say, but with this input, the decisions would be better.”
‘Healthcare is beyond politics’
Zaliha stressed that everyone should understand that health is an apolitical matter and people need to set aside political agendas to deal with health matters.
“Everyone has their own political inclinations but when it comes to solutions for health, I think Reformasi is very important.
“So in terms of solutions or making decisions, it has to be apolitical.
“That’s why we have the public health clinics for the poor (Klinik Daif) to bring healthcare to the rakyat, especially the B40.
“And we have also established such clinics in opposition-governed states like Kelantan, Terengganu, Kedah, and Perlis. The goal is to help the people, not play politics,” she said. - Mkini
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