Malaysia’s top party is ripping itself apart on factional lines while an opposition alliance grows more firmly together
Veteran politician Anwar Ibrahim marked the two-decade anniversary of Malaysia’s reform movement at his party’s national congress over the weekend amid heated factional infighting that could threaten wider political stability.
The man tipped to become the country’s next prime minister delivered his first speech as president of Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) since being freed from jail and pardoned of a sodomy conviction last May, but political acrimony cast an ominous shadow over the event.
PKR, now the largest party in the ruling Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition, is sharply divided between Anwar loyalists and others backing PKR deputy president Mohamed Azmin Ali. The factional divide broke into the open with Azmin’s supporters staging a dramatic walkout during the proceedings.
At the crux of the divide is a dispute over who will take the premiership after 94-year-old Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad steps down, as he has vowed to do before his five-year term expires in 2023.
Nile Bowie is a journalist and correspondent with the Asia Times covering current affairs in Singapore and Malaysia. He can be reached at nilebowie@gmail.com.
Veteran politician Anwar Ibrahim marked the two-decade anniversary of Malaysia’s reform movement at his party’s national congress over the weekend amid heated factional infighting that could threaten wider political stability.
The man tipped to become the country’s next prime minister delivered his first speech as president of Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) since being freed from jail and pardoned of a sodomy conviction last May, but political acrimony cast an ominous shadow over the event.
PKR, now the largest party in the ruling Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition, is sharply divided between Anwar loyalists and others backing PKR deputy president Mohamed Azmin Ali. The factional divide broke into the open with Azmin’s supporters staging a dramatic walkout during the proceedings.
At the crux of the divide is a dispute over who will take the premiership after 94-year-old Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad steps down, as he has vowed to do before his five-year term expires in 2023.
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