Is Latheefa Koya Mahathir's instrument to neutralise Anwar?

From Malaysiakini (Kim Quek):

Firstly, why was current chief commissioner Mohd Shukri Abdull abruptly replaced mid-stream of his service contract at the height of legal process pursuing culprits of the humongous 1MDB crimes, which formed part of his stirring performance as no-nonsense graft-buster since assuming this position a year ago? No credible explanation has been advanced.

Secondly, if this appointment is above board, why was it kept as a complete secret, even to cabinet members, right up to the moment of appointment? Isn’t it clear that the PM was expecting stern reservation or opposition from the cabinet and component parties of the Harapan alliance if Latheefa’s name was proposed? Is this how the leader of a reformist government should act on a major appointment as politically crucial as the nation’s top graft-buster?

Thirdly, Latheefa has been an active partisan politician all her working life. How could she be expected to transform overnight into a politically neutral chief manning an institution as politically sensitive as the MACC to wipe out rampant corruption, the main culprits of which are politicians, spanning both sides of the political divide? Wouldn’t such an inherently political MACC chief cause the institution to lose credibility and public trust? Are there no candidates with lesser baggage than Latheefa to perform this duty?

Fourthly, Latheefa has been a staunch anti-Anwar Ibrahim political player for years, and has been acting as the vanguard of the Azmin Ali faction in the running Anwar-Azmin feud within PKR. The latter is the largest component party of Pakatan Harapan coalition, and PKR president Anwar is the prime minister-designate to succeed interim PM Mahathir.

Political intrigue

Naturally, Latheefa’s appointment immediately raised alarm and anger in the Anwar faction, and fuelled public suspicion of a political plot to sabotage the power transition to Anwar, particularly when no one seems to believe in Mahathir’s sincerity to pass the baton to Anwar.




This public mistrust of Mahathir’s promise to hand power to Anwar arises from Mahathir’s persistent cold treatment of Anwar, treating the latter as a complete outsider and never consulted him on any major event or decision throughout his one-year reign. This impression is further reinforced by Mahathir’s perennial evasions to give unambiguous answers on questions on the promised power transfer.

The political intrigue connected to Latheefa’s appointment is further compounded by the fact that Azmin (deputy to Anwar in the PKR hierarchy) has been turned into a strong Mahathir ally since Harapan came to power a year ago. And Azmin has ambition to become the prime minister – as soon as he can make it.

It is not difficult to see that Latheefa has been suddenly thrust into a powerful position where she could play a crucial role of partisan politics in a potential power tussle within the coalition, with Mahathir having the advantage as her direct political boss.