Daim Zainuddin, whose visit to China this month sparked criticism over the role of the CEP, told the South China Morning Post that the council’s members were committed and backed by ” a young, very hardworking and efficient secretariat”.
He also expressed confidence that the five-member council would complete their work within the 100-day period.
“All of us are doing voluntary national service. We will submit our report to the prime minister and after that, all of us will go back to our normal jobs,” he told the paper.
Besides Daim, the CEP comprises Zeti Akhtar Aziz, Hassan Marican, Robert Kuok and Jomo Kwame Sundaram.
Barisan Nasional (BN) leaders have criticised the council, formed days after Pakatan Harapan’s victory in May, saying it was undermining the Cabinet.
This was after Daim met top Chinese officials ahead of Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s visit to Beijing next month.
Daim told SCMP that the prime minister could expect a warm welcome from top Chinese officials, despite his administration’s plan to scale back major projects undertaken by Chinese companies.
He said he had been briefed by officials there on what they hoped to achieve during’s Mahathir first official visit to China after winning the May polls.
“They look forward to my prime minister’s visit which they describe as a meeting of old friends,” Daim said.
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