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The Madani Doctrine of Selective Outrage
Mihar Dias December 2025
If there is one thing Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has mastered in his two years as Prime Minister, it is the fine art of looking shocked — shocked! — every time yet another one of his political secretaries gets caught behaving like mini-Maharajas of Putrajaya.
At this point, Malaysians have seen that expression more times than the actual implementation of “good governance.” If only shock alone could plug leakages; we’d be a surplus nation by now.
Here we are again, with yet another polsec — this time, Muhammad Kamil Abdul Munim, the Finance Minister’s own gatekeeper (and since the Finance Minister happens to be PMX, he is essentially Anwar’s gatekeeper’s gatekeeper). https://focusmalaysia.my/after-shamsul-iskandar-another-pmx-polsecs-turn-to-be-engulfed-in-support-letter-power-abuse/
Kamil is alleged to have issued a very imaginative “support letter,” complete with “URGENT” stamped in such a way that one imagines he did it with the same gusto a child uses when stamping PASSED on pretend homework.https://focusmalaysia.my/after-shamsul-iskandar-another-pmx-polsecs-turn-to-be-engulfed-in-support-letter-power-abuse/
The letter, bearing the gloriously official-sounding letterhead of the Office of the Finance Minister’s Political Secretary, conveniently came with a list of five pre-qualified companies for the Batu Pahat flood mitigation project. https://focusmalaysia.my/after-shamsul-iskandar-another-pmx-polsecs-turn-to-be-engulfed-in-support-letter-power-abuse/
A tender so “open” it came with a shortlist — truly, Malaysian innovation at its finest.
So, like obedient civil servants in any system well-trained to sniff hierarchy, JPS didn’t treat the letter like random scrap paper.
No, no — this was treated like royal parchment delivered from the High Throne. “For KP’s attention. Please request feedback,” one officer scribbled, before the director-general himself gave his esteemed stamp and signature. https://focusmalaysia.my/after-shamsul-iskandar-another-pmx-polsecs-turn-to-be-engulfed-in-support-letter-power-abuse/
Random letters don’t get this kind of VIP red-carpet rollout. But letters from politically-connected youth chiefs? Oh, those glide through the bureaucracy faster than a Shopee parcel on Singles’ Day.
By the time the instructions, minute sheets, and tracking boxes were ticked, the so-called “open tender” had already entered the digestive system of government machinery — and we all know what comes out once digestion is complete.
Of course, none of this squares with PMX’s proud proclamation, made with a straight face upon taking office: no more procurement without tender. https://focusmalaysia.my/after-shamsul-iskandar-another-pmx-polsecs-turn-to-be-engulfed-in-support-letter-power-abuse/
Today, we are apparently in the era of open tender by closed shortlist, a concept so advanced even the OECD hasn’t discovered it.
So now Malaysians wait for the familiar script to kick in:
• PMX expresses grave disappointment.
• PMX says he has “sternly reprimanded” the relevant officer.
• PMX insists the letter was “vague.”
• Nobody gets sacked.
• Everyone moves on until the next polsec discovers a new shortcut into corporate power.
Speaking of shortcuts, is it not miraculous how Anwar’s former polsec Farhash transformed himself from political aide to chairman of five listed companies in two years? https://focusmalaysia.my/after-shamsul-iskandar-another-pmx-polsecs-turn-to-be-engulfed-in-support-letter-power-abuse/
Corporate Malaysia must be incredibly accessible these days — as long as you sit within five metres of PMX at some point.
Then came Shamsul Iskandar, forced to resign, now remanded, allegedly linked to illicit transfers. That was last week’s drama.
This week’s star is Kamil.
Next week? Who knows. At this rate, PMX may need a dedicated weekly press slot titled:
“Today in My Office: I Had No Idea.”
Yet through all these revelations, silence from the top is deafening. No denial from Kamil. No response from PMX. No explanation, no accountability. Just the usual calmness of a leader who seems remarkably unshaken by the behaviour of his own handpicked aides.
Which raises the question Malaysians whisper but rarely ask publicly:
Is PMX truly unable to rein in his political secretaries — or is he simply unwilling?
For a government that loves preaching integrity, transparency, and moral cleanliness, the pattern is embarrassingly consistent.
One polsec becomes powerful; another becomes wealthy; another becomes indicted. But the head of government appears either blissfully oblivious or strategically tolerant.
Do as I say, not as my polsecs do — that seems to be the real Madani mantra.
Until this changes, “reform” will remain what it increasingly looks like under this administration: a brand name, not a governing principle.
Mihar Dias (mihardias@gmail.com) is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav. Log in to creator.newswav.com and become a Newswav Creator now!
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