Save KL president M Ali said there was no justification for reviving the post as the Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) could still function without a federal territories minister.

The ministry was disbanded after Anwar assumed office last year. Its functions were placed under an agency in the Prime Minister’s Department.

In October, law and institutional reform minister Azalina Othman Said told the Dewan Rakyat that the decision to abolish the federal territories ministry had helped the government save RM2 million a year.

At the time she said the government faced no operational problems without a federal territories ministry.

Ali said this was why he was surprised that the federal territories minister’s post had been revived, with former health minister Dr Zaliha Mustafa appointed to the position.

“Why create the ministerial post again when (DBKL) was functioning smoothly without it? Is it just to fill the numbers and balance the (Cabinet) structure?”

Meanwhile, several former Kuala Lumpur MPs said Zaliha had a huge task ahead of her as there was a backlog of issues which needed to be resolved.

Former Wangsa Maju MP Wee Choo Keong said tackling Kuala Lumpur’s social issues, the cost of living, as well as the myriad issues at people’s housing projects would not be a walk in the park.

“It’s not an easy task. We need an experienced minister to look into these serious and difficult issues.

“It’s not something for trial and error,” he told FMT.

Former Batu MP Tian Chua meanwhile said the affordability of houses for medium and low-income families, as well as urban poverty, would be among the top issues that Zaliha would have to look into.