AFTER many claims circulating on Twitter yesterday (Feb 2) that Dewan Rakyat speaker Datuk Johari Abdul’s son Muhammad Iqbal Johari’s appointment as Special Functions Officer 1 is an act of nepotism, Johari has come out to clarify that his son is not an official member of his staff. 

“He is not working under the speaker’s office. As of today, there was no appointment, nothing yet,” Malaysiakini reported him as saying today.

Johari also claimed that the information on the Parliament website was incorrect. 

According to the staff directory on the Parliament website, Iqbal also has an official email address and telephone extension number.

Johari further stated that Iqbal had worked for him as his assistant for the previous 14 years and that he was paid out of his own pocket.

“The government is not paying him… He is helping me as a former MP. I have unfinished business and he is helping me.”

Contrary to claims made by netizens, he emphasised that Iqbal is only carrying out his obligations and that no appointment has been made.

Nepotism allegations

Following rumours that a certain “Muhammad Iqbal Johari” had been appointed as the Yang di-Pertua Dewan Rakyat’s Special Duties Officer 1, the allegation has garnered widespread attention and highlighted problems with claims of nepotism under the current Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim administration. 

Besides, many people, including Bersatu member Badrul Hisham Shaharin, better known as ‘Chegubard’, made the accusation online.

Additionally, he asserted that Iqbal had his entire name changed in the Parliament’s online directory in order to hide his ties to the speaker. 

(Initially, there was one Mohammed Iqbal bin Johari listed as a special duties officer in the @MYParlimen staff directory.

(But after it was revealed that Nurul Izzah had been appointed as Anwar’s adviser, the directory had been edited, where ‘bin Johari’ was removed from Iqbal’s name.

(Everyone else had their surname stated, except this one. Why?)

Furthermore, in his tweet, Badrul tagged Johari and questioned whether Iqbal is his own son.- Feb 3, 2023

https://focusmalaysia.my/my-son-is-not-official-staff-member-says-johari-after-widespread-nepotism-claims/