A leaf from Najib’s book
Playbook #3
Playbook is a take on the nexus of bureaucracy, politics and business, a section within the newsletter. I originally scheduled this for Mondays but I have decided to keep it flexible since The Malaysianist somewhat keeps up with the weekly news flow.
Also I have changed the main picture to resemble a checkers board and each icon hints to what’s being covered in the newsletter.
Four columns today: 1) Anwar’s empowering of key senior civil servants mimics that of predecessor Najib Razak 2) And the PM consolidates power as Yayasan Pelaburan Bumiputera becomes a direct investor 3) Is the Johor-Singapore special economic zone just political theatre? 4) Sultan Ibrahim’s high-speed rail dream may have to take a backseat.
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Let’s start with the civil service. Chief Secretary to the Government Shamsul Azri Abu Bakar was in Kota Bharu last week to allay residents’ concerns over incomplete federal projects, citing delayed land acquisitions.
Ever since he clocked in, Shamsul has been on the ground exuding a member of parliament (MP) vibe, even if he isn’t one.
Aside from meeting residents to explain federal policies, he has been making spot checks, ensuring the bureaucracy moves in step with the Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s directives.
But Shamsul’s role is expanding to not only being the PM’s man on bureaucratic matters – he was recently appointed chairman of the Energy Commission (EC), a move that not only drew criticism, but similar to that of former PM Najib Razak.