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Malaysia’s Mahathir, Anwar say Muhyiddin’s government doesn’t have mandate to rule
- On the second anniversary of Pakatan Harapan’s historic win, the two leaders said ‘it’s time’ to restore an election mandate that they won two years ago
- The joint statement came a day after the speaker accepted Mahathir’s request to start a motion of no-confidence against Muhyiddin
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Malaysia’s on-again-off-again political partners Mahathir Mohamad and Anwar Ibrahim said “it’s time” to restore an election mandate that they won two years ago, issuing a statement together for the first time since internal bickering in February led to the collapse of their ruling coalition.
The two leaders – now in the opposition – said the current government led by Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin wasn’t the choice of voters at ballot boxes and does not have a mandate to rule.
The statement on Saturday was issued on the second anniversary of 2018’s historic elections, when their Pakatan Harapan coalition ousted an alliance that had ruled for six decades.
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The Pakatan Harapan government imploded in February, less than halfway through its term, after a power struggle boiled over and Mahathir stepped down as prime minister.
For days, political parties and lawmakers switched allegiances between camps that supported either the 94-year-old Mahathir or Anwar, 72.
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In the end, Muhyiddin, who was in Mahathir’s camp, became a contender when parties from the previous government agreed to back him.
Mahathir had rejected some opposition backing as he said it would mean working with “corrupt” individuals.
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