KUALA LUMPUR – A host of ruling lawmakers are set to be appointed to various state agencies as Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin seeks to tighten his grip over the Perikatan Nasional (PN) coalition government that he leads.

He named 70 ministers and deputy ministers after taking office, the second largest administration ever to be assembled in Malaysia. But many leaders in the loose coalition, especially in Umno, which is the largest bloc in PN, remained disgruntled.

The once dominant Malay Muslim party had returned to government as the largest bloc in PN but with far less representation in the administration than Tan Sri Muhyiddin’s Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia.

However, PN sources told The Straits Times that the alliance is moving to appease those left out by appointing them to the country’s vast array of government-linked companies (GLC), development boards and licensing authorities.

Having come to power at the end of February after the Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition collapsed just 21 months after the watershed election in 2018, Mr Muhyiddin’s leadership could yet be tested both in Parliament and in his own Bersatu party which is chaired by ousted premier Mahathir Mohamad. Mr Muhyiddin is president of Bersatu and the unique party structure divides decision-making power between the two men.

“Umno and PAS’ original plan was to hold a snap election after Apec,” an Umno official told The Straits Times, referring to the regional trade forum that Malaysia is hosting in November. “But if Muhyiddin has enough MPs happy with their positions, then they will want to hold on until the term ends in 2023.”

Already, Umno’s Machang MP Ahmad Jazlan Yaakub was made chairman of the body tasked with overseeing palm oil last week. Malaysia is the world’s second largest producer of the commodity.

This confirmed an April 3 report in The Straits Times that Tan Sri Bakke Salleh would be forced out of the Malaysian Palm Oil Board as one of several changes already in the works. He is also set to be ousted as chairman of Felda, a powerful land development authority that presides over 850,000 hectares of land whose Malay owners are often viewed as a solid vote bank, accounting for nearly a tenth of the Malaysian electorate.

Mr Bakke Salleh remains one of few figures to emerge from the 1MDB debacle with credibility having resigned as chairman of the state investment firm after US$700 million (S$1 billion) was diverted from its accounts in a dubious joint-venture with Petrosaudi in 2009.

A list of 20 PN legislators lined up to head the likes of Felda, the Muslim pilgrimage savings fund Tabung Haji as well as government linked companies (GLCs), including some of the nation’s largest ones such as energy provider Tenaga Nasional and telco Telekom Malaysia has been making the rounds.

But, in a sign that not all in PN agree to political interference in GLCs, some have rejected the positions offered. The Straits Times understands Umno deputy president Mohamad Hasan has declined the chairmanship of Tenaga and Malaysia’s longest-serving MP, Tan Sri Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, has refused to chair oil giant Petronas.

“Some are correct, some are not. A few have rejected, so changes have been made,” a government source familiar with the process told The Straits Times.

PAS secretary general Takuyiddin Hassan was quoted as saying on Monday that all PN parliamentarians would be appointed to government positions because “they are all qualified”.

This assertion has come under fire from civil society and political opponents who insist the appointments are nothing but political patronage. Studies show GLCs accounted for 42 per cent of the local bourse’s RM1.7 trillion market value in 2013 while unlisted state oil firm Petronas is the only Fortune 500 company in Malaysia.

“If you make it a rule every single MP will be given additional position and perks when people are struggling to eat, this is to me a crime,” said PH chief Anwar Ibrahim on Tuesday, referring to the economic hardships arising from the coronavirus outbreak.

PN figures have pointed the finger back at PH, who also made wholesale changes to state agencies, although the latter stopped short of injecting politicians into GLCs.

“Does PH want to criticise the PN government for replacing their political appointments?” former premier Najib Razak said Monday in a Facebook post.

Names being bandied about for these appointments so far do not include Umno leaders currently facing graft charges such as Datuk Seri Najib and his successor as party president Zahid Hamidi, who was also former deputy premier.

Parliament is due to sit on May 18, and while momentum behind a no-confidence vote has ebbed, the government will still have to seek approval for several measures, including the RM35 billion fiscal stimulus unveiled last month to soften the blow of the coronavirus crisis.

Meanwhile, Mr Muhyiddin is being challenged as Bersatu president in party polls due later this year by Kedah chief minister Mukhriz Mahathir, whose father was returned as chairman unopposed during nominations last month.

So far, two party officials who previously supported Tun Mahathir have defected and become deputy ministers, while other Bersatu leaders are expected to figure in upcoming appointments to shore up the premier’s position.

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