Anwar Ibrahim had long campaigned for change prior to becoming the prime minister, but there was one area he wasn’t prepared to change too much - political appointments to GLCs and government agencies.

Pakatan Harapan did not pledge to change this practice in their 2022 election manifesto but it was a prominent feature of their 2018 manifesto when the coalition was led by Dr Mahathir Mohamad*.

Of the 442 government departments, agencies, and GLCs listed in the Ministers of the Federal Government Order 2023, politicians from Anwar’s ruling coalition - 19 MPs and 42 other politicians - took up at least 61 boardroom positions*.

This article will only examine appointments that are not held by cabinet ministers or chief ministers/menteri besar because some entities require them to chair the board, according to their internal rules...