After Mat Sabu slept overnight at Maha 2024 expo site, Anwar praises minister’s dedication, work on halting seed, fertiliser ‘cartels’

SERDANG, Sept 14 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today praised Agriculture and Food Security Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Sabu as a hardworking minister who is overseeing crucial reforms at the ministry tasked with raising the country’s food production.

Addressing the centennial Malaysian Agriculture, Horticulture and Agrotourism expo here, Anwar joked that Mohamad, popularly known as Mat Sabu, had slept overnight at the site of the event, but described it as proof of the latter’s commitment to making sure the exposition is successful.

The prime minister said Mohamad has undertaken significant steps to address legacy issues in the Agriculture and Food Security Ministry (KPKM), citing the move to dismantle the “cartel” that once monopolised the sale and import of rice seeds and fertilisers.

“I’d like to stress that I am with you (KPKM), and I have personally assessed the job that you have done. This Maha expo itself is the culmination of a year’s work, and I must stress again... that how Mat Sabu works, many of you do not know,” Anwar said.

“He slept at the site of this expo overnight to monitor the event. Not many do that. So I hope this will inspire and motivate other officers. Ignore what the detractors say.”

Mohamad is a longtime political ally and a close friend of the prime minister. Anwar had entrusted the Parti Amanah Malaysia president with the task to beef up Malaysia’s food security, a key agenda of the coalition government he leads as it bids to reduce reliance on food import.

Malaysia is a net food importer, spending billions of ringgit annually to bring in food that could otherwise grow here. In 2023, it spent a staggering RM78 billion on food imports.

The Anwar administration said it plans to modernise the agriculture sector on the back of sophisticated technologies and artificial intelligence.

Today, the prime minister described the responsibility to revamp the food production sector as tough, but not insurmountable.

“We cannot continue to rest on our laurels. What is inadequate with this country? We are a maritime nation. We have a fertile soil. We have a proven track record.

“At one point, we were the number one producer of rubber, palm oil,” he said.

“But with farming we are still crawling. Thus, this must be the focus of this ministry.”