PRIME Minister Anwar Ibrahim today dismissed allegations that the appointment of his daughter Nurul Izzah Anwar as his senior economic adviser is a case of nepotism. 

He said it was only nepotism when a family member was put in a position to abuse power, enrich oneself, obtain contracts, and get paid a huge sum. 

“This is not the case,” Anwar told reporters after attending the National Sports Awards at the National Sports Council in Kuala Lumpur today. 

Anwar was responding to the mounting criticism of Nurul Izzah’s appointment.

He said that Nurul Izzah’s role as his adviser was to help ensure government projects and tenders were done in an orderly manner. 

“I guarantee that (my) administration, even though some are unhappy with my decision, will fight corruption, abuse of power, and the enrichment of any leader or officer,” the prime minister said. 

Anwar also hit out at his critics, adding that past prime ministers and ministers who awarded their family members “hundreds of millions of ringgit” worth of contracts were in no position to talk about transparency. 

Among those who questioned the controversial decision was the president of Transparency International Malaysia, Muhammad Mohan. 

He said the prime minister had always spoken up against nepotism and cronyism, so this did not look good on him. 

Muhammad said although he regarded Nurul Izzah as a person of integrity, the perception arising from her appointment showed that nepotism was “back”, adding that it would not have been an issue if the PKR vice-president was appointed to another ministry. 

He hoped that Anwar would respond to the brickbats and urged him to rescind Nurul Izzah’s appointment as soon as possible. – January 31, 2023.