COMMENT | If ministerial jobs are by application only, the requirements would look something like this:
- Leadership and organisational skills;
- Logical thinking and analytical ability;
- Excellent communication skills;
- Undergraduate qualification (minimum) from an accredited university;
- No criminal record or public scandals;
- Prior work experience is highly desirable but not necessary; and
- No subject matter knowledge is required.
This does not sound like a demanding list. Only the first three items are skills-based. But most ministers we have do not meet these requirements – for some, not even the basic requirement of having a degree from an accredited university.
In this article, I want to discuss the notion of competence among ministers, and use the test case of Minister of Health Khairy Jamaluddin to show the difference competence makes.
In the latter part of the article, I will also discuss why it is almost impossible for us to have more Khairys in government with our current system.
If a minister has the seven prerequisites outlined above, they are likely to command the two most important ingredients in politics: credibility among equals and the confidence of the people.
Unlike a private organisation, the people (the de facto employer of the government) do not have quarterly or yearly evaluations of the government.
Instead, we rely on gut feeling and accumulated experience to know how well a minister is doing.
Khairy’s demonstrated ability in leadership and organisation, logical thinking and analytical ability, as well as communication skills, have put him above the rest, most intimately contrasted to his predecessor Dr Adham Baba.
First, leadership and organisation...