Geoffrey Williams said that as the ministry was responsible for devising policies and not implementing them, its head should be able to provide technical economic insight.

“They need to be good at identifying strategic reform priorities and to motivate the need for reform.

“They also need to oversee the design of these policies, and ensure they are feasible for implementation,” he told FMT.

Earlier today, Rafizi announced his resignation as the economy minister following his loss as PKR’s deputy president to Nurul Izzah Anwar in the party polls .

Williams said the future economy minister should not be “bogged down in politics”, as it would cause the ministry to fail in the execution of its function from the outset.

“If it is headed by a charismatic and ambitious politician, it will be used to push career agendas rather than necessary long-term reforms.

“This will damage both the policy design process and the government’s credibility, because all reforms will be driven by personal and political agendas,” he said.

He pointed to the “successful” appointment of Amir Hamzah Azizan as finance minister II as an example of a strong and largely apolitical technocrat leader.

He suggested that Nurhisham Hussein, the senior director of economics and finance in the Prime Minister’s Office, would make an ideal candidate.

“He has a strong economic background and a detailed knowledge of policy implementation and how to navigate administrative hurdles,” he said.

However, Akademi Nusantara’s Azmi Hassan pointed out that appointing technocrats such as Amir would require them to be appointed as senators first.

“I’m not sure if there are any vacancies for senators except for (investment, trade and industry minister) Tengku Zafrul Aziz’s, as his senate term ends in December,” he said.