New premier's appointment installs a non-elected government and restores scandal-tainted UMNO to power
In a stunning outcome to a week of unprecedented political turbulence, former interior minister Muhyiddin Yassin was sworn in as Malaysia’s eighth prime minister on Sunday (March 1) after being appointed by the nation’s constitutional monarch.
The move forces out elder statesman Mahathir Mohamad, 94, who was elected prime minister in a historic May 2018 victory that unseated the long-ruling Barisan Nasional coalition but resigned on February 24 amid political machinations that aimed to deny the premiership to his promised successor Anwar Ibrahim.
Muhyiddin’s appointment by Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah, known as the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, installs a new coalition government without an electoral mandate and will effectively return the scandal-plagued United Malays National Organization (UMNO) party that was ousted at the ballot box less than two years ago to power.
Protests against Muhyiddin’s assumption of the premiership have already erupted, with activists criticizing the backdoor maneuvering of political elites they regard as unethical and unaccountable, a rally cry that could galvanize larger demonstrations in the days ahead.
In a stunning outcome to a week of unprecedented political turbulence, former interior minister Muhyiddin Yassin was sworn in as Malaysia’s eighth prime minister on Sunday (March 1) after being appointed by the nation’s constitutional monarch.
The move forces out elder statesman Mahathir Mohamad, 94, who was elected prime minister in a historic May 2018 victory that unseated the long-ruling Barisan Nasional coalition but resigned on February 24 amid political machinations that aimed to deny the premiership to his promised successor Anwar Ibrahim.
Muhyiddin’s appointment by Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah, known as the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, installs a new coalition government without an electoral mandate and will effectively return the scandal-plagued United Malays National Organization (UMNO) party that was ousted at the ballot box less than two years ago to power.
Protests against Muhyiddin’s assumption of the premiership have already erupted, with activists criticizing the backdoor maneuvering of political elites they regard as unethical and unaccountable, a rally cry that could galvanize larger demonstrations in the days ahead.
Read the full story at Asia Times.
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.
