COMMENT | Anwar's cabinet starting on the wrong foot?

COMMENT | Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s government which promised austerity and to do away with big entourages and welcoming parties started on the wrong foot - minutes after members of the cabinet were sworn in on Saturday afternoon.

Just around the corner from Istana Negara, where Anwar’s ministers were sworn in, a large group of civil servants were at the Ministry of International Trade and Industry for its newly minted minister, Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz (above) to make his appearance.

The crowd waited for him to do what Bernama described in a video clip as: “menyumpurnakan majilis simbolik ‘clock-in’ sempena hari pertama beliau bertugas” (Officiating a symbolic clock-in ceremony to mark his first day in office).

Was this ceremony necessary? Even if it was, couldn’t it have waited till Monday? Or was it a carry-forward of the campaigning period when candidates moved around with a train of supporters in tow?

What was the hurry? To silence critics and detractors who expressed disappointment over Zafrul’s appointment despite his defeat at the recent polls? Was it a show to tell the world he enjoys the support of government servants...