Malaysia’s new PM Muhyiddin Yassin spends first day facing questions about cabinet, majority

Malaysia’s new prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin spent his first day in office on Monday in meetings with the Chief Secretary to the Government and various agency heads to discuss his new administration, as state governments across the nation faced questions about their validity following recent political realignments and rumours of party-hopping. On Monday evening he gave his first speech, saying he would appoint cabinet members who are clean and have integrity. “The government under my leadership will prioritise efforts to increase the integrity and good practices by government. This includes efforts to stamp out corruption and abuse of power and improving enforcement and the relevant laws, regulations and practices,” Muhyiddin said. The 72-year-old said he had not sought the position of prime minister, but now wanted reconciliation in the country and the chance to lead. Muhyiddin was sworn in on Sunday after Malaysia’s king appointed him to the role the day before. The move came as a shock to members of the former Pakatan Harapan ruling coalition, which had only been in government for 21 months before an attempt at a political coup to form a back door government saw week of political turmoil in the country. The week’s chain of events included the resignation of ex-premier Mahathir Mohamad, a three-way tussle for Parliamentary support between Mahathir, Muhyiddin and Pakatan Harapan leader Anwar Ibrahim, and the king stepping in to conduct interviews with all of Parliament’s 222-seat lower house. The appointment of Malay nationalist politician Muhyiddin – who is president of the Malaysian United Indigenous Party (Bersatu) – has given rise to concerns that his close ties with former ruling party the United Malays National Organisation (Umno) and the Islamic Party of Malaysia (PAS) would give birth to a more right-wing government compared to the progressive Pakatan Harapan. Meanwhile, several Malaysian states are embroiled in their own mini-crises as questions of which party runs the state arise. Last week, PH lost the southernmost state of Johor to a Bersatu-Umno coalition, while PH leaders in the state of Malacca confirmed that the coalition no longer commanded a majority in the state legislative assembly after Bersatu unceremoniously exited the alliance last Monday. The northern state of Perak is suffering from similarly close numbers, and may face a hung assembly. The nation is awaiting the formation of a new cabinet under Muhyiddin, who split with Bersatu chairman Mahathir last week during the height of the crisis. Despite Muhyiddin’s assurance that he would appoint a corruption-free cabinet, analysts have suggested that a slew of Umno members – some of whom are currently on trial for corruption – may see themselves back in decision-making roles. What just happened in Malaysia? A look at how it got its eighth prime minister Umno, a race-based party that ruled Malaysia for more than six decades, was ousted in the May 2018 election after Mahathir came out of retirement to join forces with his on-again, off-again rival Anwar Ibrahim, 72, in the Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition. This rumour was further bolstered when Umno leader and former deputy prime minister Zahid Hamidi – currently on trial for over 85 charges of corruption and money-laundering – applied to postpone his trial for a day citing a meeting with the prime minister, although the Prime Minister’s Office later denied this. The incoming government must form a cabinet and formulate policies that can mend this broken public trust. Political scientist Azmil Tayeb Reappointing scandal-tainted Umno members would be a poor decision on the part of the new government said political scientist Azmil Tayeb, and will only serve to alienate non-Malay citizens. “Considering the deep polarisation seen in the Malaysian society now and the sense of betrayal felt by many, the incoming government must form a cabinet and formulate policies that can mend this broken public trust and alleviate the interreligious and interethnic animosities that are currently prevalent,” he said. “The main reason people voted out the then-government in 2018 was that they wanted change and change is what the new government must provide to the people now.” Muhyiddin Yassin as Malaysia’s new PM sparks fears of return to ‘Umno politics’ Muhyiddin, the previous home affairs minister, was picked by the country’s king to replace ex-premier Mahathir, whose shock resignation came amid claims of political skulduggery that tore apart his administration. Mahathir, 94, struck a defiant tone on Sunday, telling the media that he would challenge Muhyiddin’s appointment in parliament to see if the leader had majority support from its 222 members. The king had on Saturday said his one-on-one interviews with lawmakers established that Muhyiddin commanded the backing of a majority of members in the Dewan Rakyat (lower house of parliament), but Mahathir rejected this and said the palace refused to grant him an audience so he could make his case. Under Malaysian law, the king has the authority to appoint as premier any individual he feels has the ability to command the majority of the house. Besides a vote of no confidence, however, PH can now take the matter to court to say that Muhyiddin’s assurance that he had a majority was misleading. “The king can rely on any process to determine who commands the confidence of the majority. However, PH can contend in court that the basis upon which Muhyiddin presented the majority was flawed or inaccurate or misrepresented,” said top constitutional lawyer Gurdial Singh. Who are the key players in Malaysia’s political shake-up? A vote can also be taken in Parliament which will definitively establish the majority and end the matter. “If Muhyiddin is shown not to have the confidence of the majority, he must then go to the king and can say he has lost confidence and recommend Parliament be dissolved to make way for elections. However, the king has the right to refuse this request and appoint someone new as premier,” he said. Additional reporting by Reuters