Ahmad Maslan back as deputy finance minister

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim today announced his line-up of deputy ministers, just a week after his controversial naming of Ahmad Zahid Hamidi as his own deputy despite the Umno chief facing multiple corruption charges.

The deputy ministers for critical portfolios include Umno's Ahmad Maslan, who returns as the deputy finance minister, alongside DAP's Steven Sim.

Ahmad served the same portfolio under former leader Najib Razak, and was panned for his vehement defence of the goods and services tax in which he had argued that it would help bring down prices.

In early 2020, Ahmad was charged with money laundering involving a sum of RM2 million from Najib, which was said to be from 1MDB. Last year, the High Court acquitted him after he agreed to pay a compound of RM1.1 million.

There were also several names from the previous Pakatan Harapan (PH) administration who were returned under different ministries. 

They include former deputy education minister Teo Nie Ching who is now the deputy digital communications minister, former deputy minister in the Prime Minister's Department Fuziah Salleh who was named as the deputy domestic trade and living costs minister, and former deputy defence minister Liew Chin Tong who was moved to the international trade and industry ministry under Tengku Zafrul Aziz.

Kota Samarahan MP Rubiah Wang of Gabungan Parti Sarawak was named as deputy minister for rural and regional development, under Zahid who holds the portfolio in addition to being the deputy prime minister. 

Beaufort MP Siti Aminah Acing of Barisan Nasional meanwhile is deputy minister for agriculture and commodity, under minister Fadillah Yusof. 

And DAP's Lim Hui Ying, the younger sister of former finance minister Lim Guan Eng, is now the deputy education minister.

The full list of deputy ministers is as follows:

Finance

Ahmad Maslan
Steven Sim

(Minister: Anwar Ibrahim)

Rural and regional development

Rubiah Wang 

(Minister: Ahmad Zahid Hamidi)

Agriculture and commodity

Siti Aminah Aching

(Minister: Fadillah Yusof)

Transport

Hasbi Habibollah

(Minister: Anthony Loke Siew Fook)

Agriculture and food security

Chan Foong Hin

(Minister: Mohamad Sabu)

Economic affairs

Hanifah Taib

(Minister: Rafizi Ramli)

Defence

Adly Zahari

(Minister: Mohamad Hasan)

Works

Abdul Rahman Mohamad

(Minister: Alexander Nanta Linggi)

Home affairs

Shamsul Anuar Nasarah

(Minister: Saifuddin Nasution)

Local government

Akmal Nasrullah

(Minister: Nga Kor Ming)

International trade and industry

Liew Chin Tong

(Minister: Tengku Zafrul Aziz)

Higher education

Yusof Apdal

(Minister: Khaled Nordin)

Science, technology and innovation

Joseph Kurup

(Minister: Chang Lih Kang)

Women, family and community development

Aiman Nafirah Sabu

(Minister: Nancy Shukri)

Domestic trade and cost of living

Fuziah Salleh

(Minister: Salahuddin Ayub)

Law and institutional reform

Ramkarpal Singh

(Minister: Azalina Othman)

Natural resources, environment and climate change

Huang Tiong Sii

(Minister: Nik Nazmi)

Entrepreneur development and cooperatives

Saraswathy Kandasamy

(Minister: Ewon Benedict)

Foreign affairs

Mohamad Alamin

(Minister: Zambry Kadir)

Tourism, arts and culture

Khairul Firdaus Akbar Khan

(Minister: Tiong King Sing)

Digital communications

Teo Nie Ching 

(Minister: Fahmi Fadzil)

Education

Lim Hui Ying

(Minister: Fadhlina Sidek)

Youth and sports

Adam Adli

(Minister: Hannah Yeoh)

Health

Lukanisman Awang Sauni

(Minister: Dr Zaliha Mustafa)

Human resources

Mustapha @ Mohd Yunus Sakmud

(Minister: Sivakumar Varatharaju Naidu)

Prime Minister's Department

Wilson Ugak Kumbong