Who’s listening to Anwar?
The prime minister’s speechifying is losing its charm.
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Today’s brief dives into:
Who’s listening to PM Anwar Ibrahim?
Twists and turns in Farhash Wafa Salvador’s corporate blitz
The storm in Vincent Tan’s coffee cup
Unpacking Syed Mokhtar’s bread basket
“I was overseas for the good of our country, not to play golf,” Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim told civil servants last Monday. The golf analogy reminds me of his predecessor, the convicted Najib Razak, who hit the turf with US presidents Barack Obama and Donald Trump.
But Anwar was parrying criticism over his frequent jet-setting. The Malaysian prime minister’s overseas trips are now summarised in a Wikipedia article – he has to date made 25 international trips since November 22, 2022 – with outcomes of each visit, if the crowdsourced encyclopaedia is to be believed.
Anwar’s overseas trips are well-curated: he’ll usually be depicted power walking to one meeting after another, with his entourage in tow, followed by photos of meeting with various corporate and political personalities, and the declaration of proposed foreign investments.
It’s a recipe his public relations team has used time and again. Other ministers in Anwar’s government have sought to follow the same formula when they are abroad for work. An amusing sight as cabinet members, deputy ministers and members of parliament back home either drive or are chauffeured to work.