Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has 'tied himself' with tainted ministers rather than free himself of them.

This is the view of Parti Keadilan Rakyat adviser Anwar Ibrahim over the minor cabinet reshuffle announced by the premier two days ago.

"Unlike in my case where I was handcuffed... in his case he chose to tie himself. Why do you need to tie yourself? You are the prime minister. You're the president of the party (Umno) with an impressive mandate," he told a press conference at his residence in Kuala Lumpur today.

He said it was obvious that the new cabinet appointments had disappointed many Malaysians who were eagerly waiting for the positive changes that Abdullah had repeatedly promised.

"The prime minister has lost a golden opportunity to prove that he was sincere when he made the promises to reform. He has failed Malaysians again.

"We hear the same controversial figures linked to scandals and corruption. Such a development will not reflect well on the country or boost public confidence," he added.

The former deputy premier and finance minister said the new cabinet line-up could also hit an economic snag as foreign investors would shy away from a corrupt government.

"Our main concern is that the anti-corruption drive - which the prime minister had promised - will not take off and the economic state would remain somewhat stagnant and this is really worrying indeed," he added.

New faces

He said the announcement was terribly disappointing especially since Abdullah had taken so much time to deliberate on the new line-up.

"We would have expected him to come up with a more credible set of leaders after all the time that he had taken... so much time deliberated on this issue, he wanted time for inspiration from the sky...similar to the sky kingdom...." he quipped, drawing laughter from the reporters.

Anwar said he was puzzled why the premier refused to look for new faces within Barisan Nasional when making the new appointments.

"I am sure there are enough credible leaders in Umno, MCA or MIC for that matter. Instead he chose to have a cabinet infested with corrupt and suspicious members," he added.

He also commented that despite the promises of reform and changes by Abdullah, the standard of democracy in the country had deteriorated.

"Corruption is more rampant, media freedom further repressed. The more independent commissions we established the more people are being repressed and stripped naked. And now we have this cabinet," he said.

Anwar is currently in town for five days before returning on Sunday to Georgetown University, Washington DC, where he is a visiting professor.

Apart from holding a number of meetings with civil society groups, Anwar will be delivering a close-door lecture on the 'Agenda of the New Economy' on Saturday night at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre.

Anwar is expected to complete his Georgetown stint in May.