PUTRAJAYA, July 28 — Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said today that his appointment as deputy prime minister was not “reward”, but a “responsibility”, after a Cabinet reshuffle saw Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, a critic of 1Malaysia Development Berhad, dropped.

Zahid, who retained his home ministry portfolio, also called on his Cabinet colleagues to support Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.

“This is not a reward; this is a responsibility that I must shoulder for the Malays and for all Malaysians,” Zahid told a press conference at the Prime Minister’s Office here.

“I urge my Cabinet colleagues, (Umno) supreme council members, division and wing leaders, as well as the Barisan Nasional leadership to give strong support to Najib,” he added, without taking questions from the press.

Zahid's deputy in the Home Ministry, Datuk Dr Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar, was moved to the Natural Resources and Environment portfolio previously headed by Datuk Seri G. Palanivel.

Parliament's Public Accounts Committee chairman Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed, who is leading the watchdog’s investigation on state-owned 1MDB, was appointed deputy home minister.

Putrajaya also announced earlier today that Tan Sri Gani Patail, who has been heading a separate investigation on 1MDB by a multi-agency task force, was replaced as Attorney-General yesterday due to “health reasons”.