Law minister says Putrajaya working to put public appointments under Parliament instead of PM

KUALA LUMPUR, July 4 — Datuk Liew Vui Keong said the government is developing a mechanism that will transfer the appointments of high-ranking public officers from the prime minister’s hands into those of members of Parliament.

The minister in the Prime Minister’s Department told the Dewan Rakyat during Question Time that he consulted the groups involved and will refine the mechanism to decentralise power from the executive to the legislative.

“This is an ongoing process. I have met stakeholders including the Parliamentary Select Committee on Major Public Appointments William Leong, the speaker and the prime minister.

“We are discussing to create a mechanism on the appointment of major public service officers. Each service is unique in its requirements for their positions and we need to fine tune the mechanism so they can appoint the best,” Liew said.

Pakatan Harapan backbencher Wong Chen had earlier asked the government on its stance and the timeline of transfer of power to appoint the top positions in the civil service, after the appointment of lawyer and former PKR politician Latheefa Koya as the chief of the Malaysia Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).

The Subang MP reminded the Dewan Rakyat that this was one of the promises made in the PH election manifesto.

In his supplementary question, Wong also asked Liew on the Prime Minister’s Question Time (PMQT) and whether or not it will be implemented.

Liew then backtracked on his original statement last week and said PMQT will be implemented in the next sitting in October.

“The prime minister has stated his interest to answer questions. For the record, last year the prime minister has often appeared in the lower House to reply to questions,” said Liew.