The prime minister's wife, Rosmah Mansor, has emerged as leader of the pack in a 'mysterious' list ranking Malaysia's "10 most powerful women" which appeared in The Star today.

The list - which appeared on a page that was not attributed to any organisation - places Rosmah as number one, followed by Bank Negara Malaysia governor Zeti Akhtar Aziz and several others, including three Pakatan Rakyat leaders.

NONE They are PKR's Lembah Pantai MP Nurul Izzah Anwar, DAP's Subang Jaya assemblyperson Hannah Yeoh and DAP's Seputeh MP Teresa Kok. No BN elected representatives made the list.

Appearing on page 5 of the MCA-owned national daily, the full-page list does not make clear if it is an advertorial or if it is part of The Star 's editorial content.

"From a preliminary group of over 1,000 women candidates in Malaysia, we selected the top 10 most powerful and influential women from seven categories of power basis: millionaires, business, lifestyle, media, non-profits and NGOs, politics and technology...

"To determine the rank within each category, as well as their overall rank on the 'Top 10' list, we applied three metrics: money, media presence and impact," the page reads, without revealing the identity of the party doing their ranking.

Another notable figure in the list is Bersih co-chairperson Ambiga Sreenevasan, who was ranked fourth most powerful behind Malaysia's very own Bond girl, Michelle Yeoh.

Ambiga lauded, but not Bersih

However, the excerpt describing Ambiga's achievements does not mention her struggles in the area of electoral reform or the Bersih movement, which she is most known for in recent times.

Others in the list include Marina Mahathir, for her work in HIV/AIDS advocacy, Kuwait Finance House CEO Jamelah Jamaluddin, as well as "fashionista" and Miss Universe Malaysia 2009 finalist Geethanjali G.

In a blog posting on the matter, veteran journalist Kadir Jasin said that The Star had refused to reveal the identity of the company which came up with the list.

"A check with the MCA-owned newspaper yielded little. The advertorial, according to the paper's advertising department, was inserted by a 'sendirian berhad' company, which The Star declined to identify," he wrote.

"It ends its proclamation with the slogan 'Empowering Women for a Better Future'. But who are the 'we' behind the award? Mystery, mystery."