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Malaysia's former prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin has been appointed as the chairman for the National Recovery Council on Sep. 4.

The appointment was announced by the chief secretary to the government, Mohd Zuki Ali.

According to The Star, the position of chairman of the National Recovery Council is considered to be a minister-level appointment.

Zuki said  that the Cabinet decided on Muhyiddin's appointment earlier on Sep. 1, before presenting it to the Agong.

In a statement, he said that the "appointment was made based on the government’s confidence in Muhyiddin’s capability to spearhead the country’s recovery strategy in order to achieve the best economic impact and improve the people’s livelihood which has been affected by the Covid-19 pandemic". 

Muhyiddin to shoulder responsibility voluntarily

In response to his appointment, Muhyiddin said that he was honoured by the appointment, and that he will carry out his role without taking any renumeration.

"I am honoured to accept this appointment and will perform my duties voluntarily without any remuneration," Muhyiddin said in a Facebook post soon after the announcement was made.

In the post, he said that the new responsibility entrusted to him will allow him to continue the ongoing efforts to lead Malaysia into recovery from the impact that was brought about by Covid-19.

"Together with members of the National Recovery Council, we will be assisting the prime minister and the government to bring Malaysia through the recovery phases as outlined in the National Recovery Plan," he wrote.

Varied reactions

Muhyiddin's new appointment garnered a mixed bag of reactions from both ends of the political spectrum in Malaysia.

PAS chief Abdul Hadi Awang commended the appointment on his Facebook page, as reported by Malaysiakini, and said that government made the right choice in choosing Muhyiddin given his experience.

PAS has been an ally of Umno, the political party of Malaysia’s current prime minister, Ismail Sabri Yaakob.

Hadi added that the appointment was a continuation of the work that Muhyiddin started as prime minister, which complements his experience in managing Covid-19.

Unlike Hadi, opposition leaders, however, were not impressed with Muhyiddin's new role.

In a statement, secretary-general of the DAP, Lim Guan Eng, said that prime minister Ismail Sabri had "run out of ideas", and so he has to "rely on the previously failed prime minister", according to Malaysiakini.

Lim said that Muhyiddin's appointment was disappointing as it showed that Ismail Sabri was not serious about the country's recovery plan, and not as committed.

"Clearly the National Recovery Plan is just window dressing to mask the fact that the real decisions are made behind closed doors by a few powerful individuals hidden from the public eye without any regard for the deliberations of the National Recovery Council," he said.

NGO wants Mahathir to replace Muhyiddin

Taking their disapproval to the Agong, Reset Malaysia, a coalition of 116 non-governmental organisations (NGO), urged the Conference of Rulers to immediately intervene and restructure the council.

Head secretariat for Reset Malaysia, Nurul Ashikin Mabahwi said that appointing the previous chairman who had failed was disappointing to all parties, Free Malaysia Today reported.

Instead, the coalition recommended another former prime minister, Mahathir Mohamad, to chair the council.

"This is why we in Reset Malaysia along with 116 other NGOs demand a chairman who can lead the National Recovery Council, and we recommend Mahathir as the chairman," she said.

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Top image via Muhyiddin Yassin/Facebook