Zaliha binti Mustafa

Key record

1. 2004Contested Johor state seat N44 Tanjong Puteri as a PKR/BA candidate and lostE3
2. 2008Contested P162 Gelang Patah as a PKR/PR candidate and lostE2
3. 2022Won P141 Sekijang with 18,941 votes and a 1,734 majority; recorded as MP since November 2022E1N28
4. 2022Became Malaysia's first female Health Minister in December 2022, serving until the December 2023 reshuffleN29
5. 2023Health Ministry delisted liquid and gel nicotine products from the Poisons Act First Schedule on 31 March, a decision later challenged in courtN4N7
6. 2023Moved to Minister in the Prime Minister's Department in charge of Federal Territories in the December reshuffleN30
7. 2025As Federal Territories Minister, said JWP and DBKL would cooperate fully with the MACC after a senior officer was detained over suspected corruptionN26
8. 2025-26Held PKR election committee chief post (May 2025), then reported as Johor PKR chief (April 2026) and PKR vice-president (August 2026)N10N19N13
9. 2026Kuala Lumpur High Court allowed a judicial review and ruled the 2023 poisons-list amendment illegal; she said the ministry would appealN7N6N5

Risk profile

How much due-diligence attention each area needs — not a finding of wrongdoing.

• PEP exposureVery high

  Federal minister, MP and party vice-president, with a prior senior ministerial portfolio.

• Political influence & networksHigh

  Holds PKR vice-presidency, Johor PKR chief, party election committee chief and government backbenchers' club chair posts.

• Public procurement interfaceMedium

  Oversaw the Federal Territories ministry and KL City Hall, where an MACC probe of a senior officer was reported.

• Corporate / GLC exposureOpen

  No directorships or company interests are documented; only a parliamentary question on GLC/GLIC investment approvals.

• Litigation historyMedium

  High Court ruled against the ministry's 2023 poisons-list amendment made under her; appeal reported as pending.

• Regulatory / criminal findingsMedium

  Judicial finding of illegality and irrationality against a policy decision under her; no personal charge or criminal finding recorded.

• Financial transparencyOpen

  No asset declaration, income or credit information appears in the records.

• Media & reputationMedium

  Recurring coverage of the vape delisting, a refugee-resettlement claim, an Asean forum photograph and an eviction commotion, all answered by her publicly.

Key roles & positions

• Political Secretary to the Minister of Women, Family and Community Development, Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, under the seventh Prime MinisterN27
• Minister of Health, December 2022 to December 2023 (first woman to hold the portfolio)N29
• Minister in the Prime Minister's Department in charge of Federal Territories from December 2023 (first woman to hold the portfolio)N30
• Chairman of the PKR election committee, announcing central-level nomination dates in May 2025N10
• Chairman of the MADANI Government Backbenchers Club, cited on the Confidence and Supply Agreement with 13 MPsN22N8

Networks & connections

• Served as political secretary to Wan Azizah Wan Ismail during the Mahathir administrationN27
• Serves in the Unity Government under Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, whose call for grassroots machinery discipline she cited for Johor PKRN30N17
• Said Johor PKR is ready to negotiate state seats with UMNO, a federal coalition partnerN18
• Echoed transport minister Loke Siew Fook on sequencing the congestion charge after public transport integrationN15
• Backbench club role linked publicly to a Confidence and Supply Agreement involving 13 MPsN22

Key findings

• ✓She has held federal ministerial office twice: Health from December 2022 to December 2023, and Federal Territories from December 2023.N29N30
• ✓She holds senior PKR positions (vice-president, Johor PKR chief, election committee chief) alongside her Sekijang seat.N13N19N10N28
• ✓Her electoral record includes two defeats (2004 state seat, 2008 parliamentary seat) before her 2022 win.E3E2E1
• ✓A judicial review ruled the ministry's 2023 nicotine delisting illegal, irrational and made without proper consultation; she defended the policy as a black-market control measure.N7N5
• ✓Her ministry pledged full cooperation with the MACC after a senior Jusa B-grade officer was detained over suspected corruption, and she said there would be no compromise with misconduct.N26
• ✓She has publicly commented on a social media post she would refer to the MCMC, on a photograph taken at an Asean forum she attended, and on refugee resettlement claims she rejects.N1N2N3

Red flags / areas of concern

• !An unresolved court ruling of illegality and irrationality against a decision made in her ministerial portfolio, with the appeal outcome unknown in the records.N7N6
• !A corruption probe touching a senior officer in her ministry and city hall; the records do not say whether it extended to her office.N26
• !No asset declaration, company-registry or GLC-directorship information in the records, leaving her financial and corporate footprint unverified.N24
• !Recurring public controversies (vape delisting, refugee resettlement claim, photograph, eviction commotion) that she has answered only through media statements.N1N2N3N20N21

Mitigating factors

• ◆No charge, prosecution or conviction against her personally appears anywhere in the records.N7N26
• ◆The adverse finding concerns a policy decision the ministry says was discussed in cabinet, not personal enrichment, and an appeal was reported.N5N6
• ◆The corruption matter in her ministry involves a detained senior officer; she committed the department and city hall to cooperating with the MACC.N26
• ◆Her electoral mandates were won under official results, with the 2022 Sekijang result verified against official figures.E1N28

Recommended next steps

1. 1Run an SSM company and business-registry search on Zaliha binti Mustafa for directorships, shareholdings and any GLC or foundation appointments.
2. 2Obtain the cause papers and the full judgment in the 2023 poisons-list judicial review from the Kuala Lumpur High Court registry, and confirm whether an appeal has been filed and its status.
3. 3Seek MACC confirmation of the status of the case involving the Jusa B-grade officer detained in 2024, and whether any statement was recorded from the minister or her office.
4. 4Check the Ministerial/MP asset declaration records held by the Prime Minister's Department and the Parliament register for declared interests and income sources.
5. 5Review Hansard for her Dewan Rakyat answers and questions, including the Health Services Commission Bill and GLC/GLIC investment approvals.
6. 6Examine Auditor-General and Public Accounts Committee reports and DBKL/JWP procurement records covering her tenure as Federal Territories Minister.