The Problem With Nurul Izzah's Appointment

 

We cannot compare political dynasties with mom and pop grocery stores or madrassas that pass on from father to son. They do not handle public funds. 

And family businesses where the reigns of management are passed on from father to children have huge axes hanging over their heads - constant hard work, risk taking and market competition. Plus its their own money. It is not taxpayers money. They can do whatever they want with their own money.

It must be noted that while 22 years in power Dr Mahathir never nurtured his sons in any political or government positions. When his father was Prime Minister, Mukhriz could not even become a division leader in Umno. And Mukhriz flopped badly in Bersatu, which was set up when both father and son were no more in power.

Second prime minister Tun Razak's  son Najib became prime minister in 2009 - 33 years after the death of Tun Razak in 1976.  It was not a father to son business. Hussein Onn became prime minister in 1976 - 14 years after the death of his father Dato Onn Jaafar in 1962. Dato Onn was not a prime minister nor even an MP.

Five years later in 1981 Hussein Onn was forced out of office. In the 41 years since then, his son Hishamuddin has never made it to PM.  There is no dynastic succession there either.

Despite being an MP, Mr Lim Kit Siang never assumed any public office. His son Lim Guan Eng served as chief minister of Penang and finance minister for 22 months in the Pakatan Harapan government, led by Dr Mahathir. Lim Guan Eng does not hold any Cabinet post in the present government.
 
Indeed Rosmah appointed herself the FLOM, with an office and all in the Prime Minister’s department. Perhaps that has contributed greatly to the criminal charges and possible lengthy jail terms she is facing now. Aspiring wannabes do please take note.

The problem with Nurul Izzah's appointment as Special Adviser on Economic Affairs to BOTH the PM and FM is that it deals with hundreds of billions of public funds. She will input on government projects, government contracts, the national oil company, the selection of CEOs and Chairmen of the GLCs etc. And in a country that is the world capital of government granted monopolies she will also have inputs into the same.

Hundreds of billions of public funds are involved - to be handled by a father and daughter team? 

What happened to the Minister of Finance (Oops sorry, its the same person). What happened to the Minister of Economic Affairs, the other Cabinet Ministers, the KSUs at the various Ministries? 

Then there already are the other "Economic Adviers" hired from the outside. Especially that ex-oilman. Are they not trustworthy? Maybe they were hired as wall flowers? Decorations to dupe the public that they have hired "clever ex-oilmen" in the team? By the way Tan Sri 'hello' in Turkish is merhaba. You may be hearing this already.

Hundreds of millions of salaries are already being paid to the Ministers and Civil Servants to help run the government.  It is not just their fat salaries. The Civil Servants (and the Cabinet) have their SOPs, the checks and balances, their multiple layers of minutes and approvals in doing their jobs.  There already is a system in place. 

All that is not sufficient? It has to be a father and daughter team to oversee hundreds of billions of public funds?

And finally there is the hypocrisy.  For 25 years or more the battle cry was anti-cronyism, anti-nepotism, anti-corruption. 

But the fellow facing 47 criminal charges is now DPM. 

The daughter is Special Adviser.

The Speaker has appointed his son as his Special Officer.

There maybe blindness. But blindness need not mean a retarded IQ as well.

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.