Prime Minister (PM) of Malaysia Anwar Ibrahim reaped controversy after appointing his daughter, Nurul Izzah Anwar as the country’s senior adviser on economics and finance. The corruption watchdog, Transparency International Malaysia (TI-M) said the appointment could have negative implications for the country’s Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI).
According to the Malaysian media, The StarWednesday (1/2/2023), TI-M President Dr Muhammad Mohan said the appointment could raise issues of conflict of interest and nepotism.
“Our view is that it is giving the wrong signal and if not corrected, that will be a factor that will emerge on the CPI,” he said when asked his views on the appointment.
Muhammad emphasized that Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim himself had previously spoken out against nepotism and that his daughter’s appointment to the post would give rise to the perception that nepotism had crept back into the country. He also urged Anwar to reconsider his decision.
However, he stressed that he did not question Nurul Izzah’s abilities or her integrity.
Previously, Nurul Izzah had revealed in an exclusive interview with the Sunday Star, that she had served as a senior adviser to the Prime Minister since January 3.
PM Anwar also spoke about this in a press conference that was held on Sunday (29/1). According to Anwar, his daughter was not paid for the position.
“I didn’t pay him (Nurul Izzah) a penny,” said Anwar as reported by local media, Malaysiakini.
Assistant Nurul Izzah, Amir H. Ghazali said, the appointment of Nurul Izzah was the prime minister’s prerogative and had to be respected. According to him, there was no element of nepotism or cronyism in the appointment.
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