Having Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad simultaneously hold office as prime minister and education minister, is not against Pakatan Harapan’s manifesto, its de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim reportedly said.

“I think that doesn’t go contrary (to the manifesto). To my understanding, the prime minister is not a portfolio.

“The prime minister manages the country generally, so does the deputy prime minister (Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail). These are not portfolios,” The Star quoted him as saying today, reportedly emphasising that the main point was that the prime minister does not also assume the post of finance minister.

Yesterday, Mahathir announced that he is assuming the post of education minister, while his deputy will also be the women’s affairs and welfare minister. He had previously named DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng as finance minister.

This appeared to go against one of the promises in Harapan’s manifesto.

Promise 12 in the manifesto states: “Under the administration of Umno and BN, Dato’ Sri Najib Tun Razak has monopolised all important powers, and cabinet ministers have become nothing but mere yes-men.

“Pakatan Harapan will reform the role of the cabinet and the Prime Minister’s Department as a whole so that the collective cabinet administration system can be brought back into Malaysia […]

“The prime minister will not simultaneously hold other ministerial posts, especially the post of minister of finance.”

The trend of having the prime minister simultaneously holding the finance portfolio started during Mahathir’s tenure as the fourth prime minister, and continued under successive administration, until the recent general election.

Following yesterday’s announcement, Gerakan youth chief Tan Keng Liang “reminded” Harapan of its promise, while MCA central committee member Ng Chok Sian urged Mahathir to retract his decision.

Other Harapan leaders, such as PKR youth secretary-general Chang Lih Kang also joined the call, saying that no one would believe Harapan or Mahathir any more if they start breaking promises so early.

When contacted yesterday, some Harapan presidential council members appear to have misunderstood the manifesto’s promise and thought it only barred the prime minister from holding the finance portfolio, whereas the text states that the prime minister “will not simultaneously hold other ministerial posts”.

However, DAP veteran and Iskandar Puteri MP-elect claimed that the appointment does “not violate the letter and spirit of the Pakatan Harapan manifesto”.

He said this is because the understanding among Harapan leaders was that the prime minister could not simultaneously take up the finance minister role.

"What was made very clear at the various Pakatan Harapan ceramah sessions throughout the country was the institutional reforms on the term limit for the prime minister and to ensure that the prime minister cannot hold the Finance Ministry portfolio.

"How could there be such an election promise when none of the Pakatan Harapan leaders from the four component parties of DAP, PKR, Amanah and Bersatu had known about it or had made such a public commitment?" he said.

This is despite Sinchew Daily quoting Amanah president Mohamad Sabu on March 26 telling a ceramah that Harapan had promised in its manifesto that the prime minister will not hold any other ministerial posts to prevent corruption and abuse of power.