An opposition MP has urged Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak to relieve himself of his finance minister's post and hand the job to Bank Negara governor Zeti Akhtar Aziz.

As Zeti's term as the central bank head ends in April, PKR Bayan Baru MP Sim Tze Tzin said Najib should "take a bold step" and hand the finance minister's post to her for the good of the country.

"We are in dire need of a finance minister of such calibre to mend the confidence deficit suffered by Malaysia as a result of the various scandalous incidents entangling 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) and the prime minister himself.

"Amid this very trying time for Malaysia, Najib should put national interest before his personal political consideration.

"He must admit that the high level of government debt, rising living costs of the people, slowing down of businesses in the country, ringgit depreciation, as well as the waves of retrenchment, are largely attributed to his failed policies and mismanagement of the Malaysian economy," said Sim in a statement.

While Zeti is not an elected representative Najib has made frequent use of appointed ministers and deputy ministers by way of awarding senatorships, for example to former Transparency International Malaysia president Paul Low and former Maybank chief executive officer Abdul Wahid Omar.

Other prominent figures coopted into the Prime Minister's Department include Pemandu chief Idris Jala, former Gerakan president Koh Tsu Koon, and former Hindraf chairperson P Waythamoorthy.

'Focus on being PM'

Sim said the retiring Bank Negara governor is the perfect candidate citing her achievements thus far, including earning Euromoney's Central Bank Governor of the Year in 2005.

"The appointment of Zeti as finance minister would certainly bolster confidence in Malaysia and improve our country’s standing globally, given her credentials and much-applauded track record.

"This is certainly a blue ocean strategy that can save our country," said the MP.

Najib, he said, would then be able to focus on his job as the prime minister and leave his other portfolio to one with a better knowledge of finance and economics.

"Since Zeti has also participated in the task force investigating 1MDB, appointing her as the finance minister would help to expedite resolution of the various issues surrounding 1MDB, which is owned by the Finance Ministry.

"She has earlier said that Malaysian ringgit would rebound once the issues [with regard to] 1MDB are resolved," he added.

The ringgit, which has been on a nosedive since 2014 sinking to an 18-year low, is predicted to continue to sink beyond RM4.50 to the US dollar this year, according to OCBC Bank (Malaysia) Berhad in a presentation in late January.