Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has announced his new cabinet lineup where several ministers have been reshuffled and some ministries are being split into two, including the Communications and Digital Ministry. As speculated earlier, former Communications and Multimedia Minister and current Damansara MP Gobind Singh is making a return to cabinet and has now appointed Malaysia’s new Digital Minister. Meanwhile, Lembah Pantai MP Fahmi Fadzil has been redesignated as the Communications Minister.
Under the Digital Ministry, Datuk Ugak Anak Kumbong, the MP from Hulu Rajang has been appointed as the Deputy Minister. Meanwhile, Kulai MP Teo Nie Ching is appointed as Deputy Minister for the Communications Ministry.
At the moment, the roles and jurisdiction of the newly formed Digital Ministry remain unknown. Before the split, the Communications and Digital Ministry oversees communications such as broadcast, media industry, telecommunications, filming, postal and courier, as well as content, personal data protection and digitalisation.
The Communications and Digital Ministry name itself was first introduced by Anwar Ibrahim when he appointed Fahmi Fadzil as minister under this first cabinet lineup in December 2022. The ministry was formerly known as called Communications and Multimedia Ministry which was previously held by Annuar Musa in August 2021.
During the Prime Minister’s opening remarks before announcing the new cabinet lineup, he said some changes and improvements were needed as the situation has changed. The improvements are not just based on past performance but also the growth of the economy, cost of living and other matters which needed to be tackled. He added there are also issues related to education, higher education and exploring new fields such as artificial intelligence and digital transformation which made him rethink making necessary changes to adapt to current situation and demands.
Other major changes include the appointment of Titiwangsa MP Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani as Plantation and commodities minister and Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad returning as the new Health Minister. Meanwhile, EPF CEO Amir Hamzah has been sworn in as Senator and he has been appointed as the Finance Minister II.
The Natural Resources, Environment and Climate Change Ministry is also being split into two with Deputy PM Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof taking the helm of the Energy Transition and Public Utilities Ministry. Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad has been redesignated as the Natural Resources and Sustainability Ministry
The newly appointed ministers will have their swearing-in ceremony at Istana Negara this afternoon.
