Malaysia PM Anwar considering Cabinet reshuffle

MALAYSIAN Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said he is thinking of reshuffling his Cabinet, following a local media report that discussions regarding a change in the minister lineup are intensifying. 

“Thinking about it,” he told reporters briefly in response to questions on Wednesday (Sep 27) as he left an event in Kuala Lumpur. He did not elaborate.

Anwar came to power in November last year after a hung Parliament, and named himself finance minister when unveiling his Cabinet the following month. The government is set to present its 2024 spending plan on Oct 13, and the budget must reconcile the nation’s limited fiscal space with its ambitions to become a high-income nation within five years.

In a speech at the event, Anwar said that Chinese tech giant Huawei Technologies “needs to do more” in Malaysia. Malaysia’s decision to roll out a second 5G network “will allow for a more effective participation by Huawei,” said Anwar.

Malaysia plans to deploy a second 5G network from as early as January, following a months-long official review of the existing network run solely by the state-owned Digital Nasional. The plan attracted lobbying attempts from Huawei to secure contracts, prompting the US and EU to warn Malaysia of security risks, according to The Financial Times. BLOOMBERG