Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin is expected to tender his resignation to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong tomorrow. — Picture by Yusof Mat Isa
KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 15 — Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin is expected to tender his resignation to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong tomorrow.
Malaysiakini reported that Muhyiddin informed of his decision during a high-level meeting with Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) leaders this morning.
Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Special Functions) Datuk Seri Mohd Redzuan Md Yusof told the online news portal that Muhyiddin informed the MPs that he had exhausted all avenues to sustain his administration and resigning was the last resort.
“We just finished the meeting. Tomorrow, there will be a special Cabinet meeting. After that, he will head to Istana Negara to submit his resignation,” Redzuan said.
Earlier when leaving PN headquarters at Publika along Jalan Dutamas, Mohd Redzuan told reporters that an announcement would be made by Muhyiddin tomorrow.
“God willing, there will be an announcement tomorrow. Let us just wait for tomorrow,” Redzuan said.
Bersatu supreme council member Datuk Seri Mohd Redzuan Md Yusof is seen leaving the Publika compound after a special meeting was held, August 15, 2021. ― Picture by Hari Anggara
He also criticised certain quarters for putting their own agendas first while keeping Malaysia’s well-being aside.
“We serve the Constitution. If they withdraw their support out of self-interest, it needs to be managed properly.
“Now it falls on the Agong to ensure the rakyat and the nation will be led by a government concerned for their welfare,” Redzuan said.
Bersatu deputy president and special adviser to the prime minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Faizal Azumu is seen leaving the Publika compound after a special meeting was held, August 15, 2021. ― Picture by Hari Anggara
Bersatu deputy president and former Perak mentri besar Datuk Seri Ahmad Faizal Azumu was also seen leaving but declined to comment beyond confirming that party leaders had attended the meeting.
Several Bersatu ministers and MPs were in attendance, some having arrived before the meeting began at 9am.
They included Housing and Local Government Minister Datuk Zuraida Kamaruddin, Communications and Multimedia Minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah, and Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed.
Others include Deputy Health Minister Datuk Dr Noor Azmi Ghazali, and Deputy Foreign Minister Datuk Kamarudin Jaffar.
Datuk Xavier Jayakumar, formerly of PKR but now an independent MP, was also reportedly in attendance, as was Deputy Federal Territories Minister Datuk Seri Edmund Santhara Kumar Ramanaidu, and Dewan Rakyat Deputy Speaker Datuk Mohd Rashid Hasnon.
Source: Malay Mail
Analysts: Deciding Cabinet lineup is Ismail Sabri’s first litmus test as PM
KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 25 — Deciding on a lineup of Cabinet members who are up to the job and appeasing his political “supporters” at the same time would be the first administrative challenge for Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob as the new prime minister, political pundits said.
More importantly, they said Ismail Sabri would need to navigate the demands of his own party Umno and its president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi to ensure the new government remains stable with the backing of his party colleagues.
The pundits also stressed that Ismail Sabri’s lineup of ministers should include experienced and tactful leaders to keep conflict at a minimum, seeing as he only has a limited amount of time to govern before an election has to be called.
Universiti Utara Malaysia political analyst Md Shukri Shuib told Malay Mail that Ismail Sabri must first consolidate his position within Umno after obvious factions emerged within the party during Perikatan Nasional’s reign.
“That is why the first task is to tackle Umno leaders, especially the president, deputy president, and the supreme council, where even though they consist of not many MPs, they still have a strong voice in ruling Umno.
“So now Ismail faces the difficult task of first needing to accommodate Umno itself,” he said.
Md Shukri said Ismail Sabri would next need to arrange a discourse with all the other ruling party heads to consolidate everyone’s support and ensure all are kept abreast of the government’s direction.
He suggested that the other political parties would be easier to approach, claiming that things would fall in place once Ismail passes the hurdle that is Umno.
“I think other party presidents, they are very professional where even the likes of PAS and Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) can accept the reality that they have smaller numbers, and even Muhyiddin, who led PN and heads Bersatu (Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia), can understand the situation,” he said.
Md Shukri explained the consolidation among ruling parties must take place to ensure Ismail Sabri’s Cabinet is united its objectives on combating Covid-19, while also working to boost the government’s waning popularity.
“If not, if they are very conservative like how it was under Muhyiddin, then all the baggage and problems will be brought up and emerge again,” he said.
Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) geostrategist Prof Azmi Hassan agreed that Ismail Sabri would unlikely to be the envy of many as he has to juggle between appointing capable ministers while pleasing the demands from the two main Malay parties, Umno and Bersatu.
“Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri needs to juggle between the capabilities of each MP to be appointed as a minister and which party the MP represents because there is internal squabbling within the parties that want their MPs to be appointed to certain critical ministries and portfolios,” he told Malay Mail.
UKM political analyst Jamaie Hamil agreed with Azmi, saying conditions like Bersatu’s demand to exclude Umno leaders facing trials in court, and Umno asking that no Bersatu ministers labelled as failures of the PN government be reappointed would all have to be factored in by Ismail Sabri, which further complicates the process.
Jamaie said Ismail Sabri would have to play his cards right to make the correct moves in his lineup so it triggers the least amount of conflict.
“We might see Ismail prioritising new candidates, besides those who were in the previous Cabinet, but he has to be careful when making his decision due to these underlying conditions from Umno and Bersatu.
“However, in my opinion, whatever decision made by the prime minister will not be able to appease every party within the government, a government whose name we are still unsure about,” he said.
Jamaie pointed out that Ismail Sabri’s other allies in PAS and GPS would also have to be considered for Cabinet positions; some, he said, had leaders who were perhaps better candidates compared to those in the previous Cabinet.
UTM’s Azmi underlined the hazards of Ismail Sabri having to work under such conditions, suggesting it would be virtually impossible to achieve both the political and administrative objectives being set out.
“Ismail needs a capable team whom he can rely and depend on, and this cannot be done when parties are demanding their people be selected for specific portfolios.
“This is the most challenging part as Ismail also needs their support, and as such, the parties are not giving a free hand to the prime minister to pick his team,” said Azmi.
Ismail Sabri, who was sworn in last Saturday, has said his Cabinet lineup would be revealed by this week while confirming that Opposition lawmakers would not be included, quashing prospects of a unity government.
Get to work quick
Upon deciding his Cabinet, Ismail Sabri is next faced with the need to rapidly address the many issues faced by the nation because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Azmi said the new prime minister would have to hit the ground running and would do well to not reappoint ministers deemed failures under the previous PN administration.
He said this would prevent Ismail Sabri’s government from repeating costly mistakes which were committed by Muhyiddin’s PN government.
“This is where certain ministries that were critical in handling the pandemic had a minister that seemed to be incapable of discharging his duties as expected, and this was because the minister was appointed not because of his abilities but because it was pushed for by his or her respective parties.
“What we need now are policies and strategies which are different from the previous ones in handling the pandemic, especially due to the emerging Covid-19 variants like Delta and Kappa,” said Azmi.
UKM’s Jamaie said there were, however, standout ministers from the previous administration whom he said performed well enough to be considered this time around.
“In my view, ministers like Khairy Jamaluddin and Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein at the Foreign Affairs Ministry can probably be retained, or maybe named for another ministry portfolio,” he suggested.
Md Shukri said Ismail Sabri should form a compact Cabinet, one smaller than that of PN’s, to avoid redundancy and overlapping functions, and that managing a smaller group of ministers would be easier when it comes to consolidating support.
However, independent political analyst Datuk M. Periasamy said that despite these calls for a smaller Cabinet, a sufficient number of portfolios must be created to cater to the multi-faceted needs of the mixed communities here.
“Even though countries which have a larger population than Malaysia have a Cabinet smaller in size, Malaysia’s Cabinet is larger as it has to accommodate the needs of a multi-racial population, given how Malaysia is not a homogenous country like the US, the United Kingdom, Indonesia or China,” he told Malay Mail.
But Periasamy agreed on the need to streamline functions by possibly integrating certain existing ministries.
“The prime minister also has to consider the wishes of various multiracial parties and appoint ministers proportionately so that no race feels they are left out,” he added.
Md Shukri pointed out how Ismail Sabri has just around 21 months to govern before a general election is due. This probably means he would most likely continue policies implemented under Muhyiddin, he added.
“I don’t think Ismail will stretch it until 21 months (before calling elections), so that is the limitation that he has... the timeframe for Ismail to work is not long, not much can be done.
“He has to work progressively with the administrative and diplomatic officers and the bureaucrats to make things work, but please reduce the size of the Cabinet,” he said.
Speculation over supposed Cabinet lineups has surfaced since Ismail Sabri’s swearing-in, with GPS calling for a deputy PM to be appointed from among their ranks.
Speculation has been rife that Bersatu’s Datuk Seri Azmin Ali and Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainuddin are possible deputy PM and finance minister candidates.
Ismail Sabri has however denied all these supposed appointments, saying he will announce his Cabinet lineup once it has been received and consented to by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.
https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2021/08/25/analysts-deciding-cabinet-lineup-is-ismail-sabris-first-litmus-test-as-pm/2000247
Malaysia gets a new prime minister — the country’s third in 3 years
Malaysia’s King Al-Sultan Abdullah has named Ismail Sabri Yaakob as the new prime minister, the palace said in a Friday statement.
Ismail will be Malaysia’s third prime minister in three years. He will be sworn in on Saturday after receiving the support of 114 members of parliament, the palace said. That’s more than the 111 required for a simple majority.
Ismail’s predecessor Muhyiddin Yassin resigned on Monday after a little over 17 months in power. Muhyiddin had lost majority support in parliament due to infighting within his ruling political coalition.
The appointment of Ismail, who was deputy prime minister under Muhyiddin, would essentially keep the ruling coalition intact.
But his ascent means that the country’s longest-governing political party — the United Malaysia National Organisation or UMNO — has reclaimed Malaysia’s premiership after a shocking loss in 2018.
UMNO was the dominant party in a coalition that ruled Malaysia for over 60 years, but it lost power in the 2018 general elections due to a financial scandal involving state fund 1MDB.
The party returned to power in 2020 after the sudden resignation of then-Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, which allowed Muhyiddin to form the current ruling coalition.
Muhyiddin said in a Thursday statement that lawmakers in the coalition who are not from UMNO would support Ismail as the new prime minister, on condition that the new cabinet doesn’t include anyone with court charges.
Several UMNO lawmakers, including party president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and former Prime Minister Najib Razak, currently face corruption charges. Both Zahid and Najib have denied wrongdoing.
‘Recipe for instability’
Before the appointment of Malaysia’s new prime minister, political analysts said Ismail would be a poor choice due to his association with the Muhyiddin government — which was widely criticized for mishandling the country’s worsening Covid-19 outbreak.
Ismail’s appointment will not end the political uncertainty that Malaysia has faced since the 2018 elections, said analysts.
The political situation in Malaysia is a “recipe for instability,” Peter Mumford, practice head for Southeast and South Asia at risk consultancy Eurasia Group, told CNBC’s “Capital Connection” on Tuesday.
Malaysia has many political parties and none hold more than 20% of parliamentary seats, while politicians don’t differ much in their economic ideology as politics is mostly driven by race and religion, explained Mumford.
In addition, politicians are not loyal to their parties and are “quite happy” to switch parties, he said.
“One of the key ways out of this political mess is for another round of general elections, and then after that negotiations on who could be the next prime minister. And if those elections result in a party or a coalition having a clear majority, then there’ll be more of a stable government,” said Mumford.
https://www.cnbc.com/2021/08/20/malaysia-king-appoints-ismail-sabri-yaakob-as-new-prime-minister.html
Race on for new Malaysian PM: A look at the different scenarios
KUALA LUMPUR — The race is now open for Malaysia’s third prime minister in as many years, following Mr Muhyiddin Yassin’s resignation on Monday (Aug 16).
Although he has stepped down after losing his parliamentary majority, the king has consented to appointing him as caretaker prime minister until a new head of government is chosen.
As yet, there is no successor in sight as parties continue negotiating a replacement who will command the support of the Dewan Rakyat’s 220 MPs.
The simple majority needed is 111.
The Malaysian Insight looks at four possible scenarios and what they entail.
Scenario 1 – Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah or Ismail Sabri Yaakob
Under this scenario, support would come from Perikatan Nasional (PN), which has 50 MPs, Gabungan Parti Sarawak (18), MCA (2), MIC (1), four independents (Julau, Tebrau, Kuala Langat and Ranau), PBS (1) and the two Umno (38) factions.
This formula is the same as the support of 115 MPs for PN under Mr Muhyiddin.
Whether it will be Kelantan prince, Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, or Umno vice-president Ismail Sabri Yaakob depends on ongoing negotiations.
While the Pagoh MP will no longer be prime minister, it will be largely status quo as the government parties are the same.
Scenario 2 – Anwar Ibrahim variation #1
The PKR president could be prime minister if all 105 MPs in the opposition support him, plus the 15 Umno MPs led by party president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi who pulled support from Mr Muhyiddin.
The composition of current opposition MPs are: Pakatan Harapan (88), Pejuang (4), Warisan (2), Parti Sarawak Bersatu (2), Upko (1), Muda (1) and one independent (Simpang Renggam).
With Mr Zahid’s 15, it will give Mr Anwar 120 MPs, which is 20 more than the PN bloc.
However, this is unlikely to happen as Mr Zahid had promised the Umno general assembly earlier this year that it would never support Mr Anwar or go into government with DAP.
Also, Pejuang under Dr Mahathir Mohamad has so far remained adamant it prefers a National Advisory Council to run the country rather than join the race to name a new prime minister.
Scenario 3 – Anwar Ibrahim variation #2
This time, it would take Bersatu’s 31 MPs to join forces with the opposition bloc’s 105, to support Mr Anwar with a total of 136 lawmakers.
But this is even more unlikely given the hostilities between Bersatu and PH, which the former toppled last year after breaking PKR by pulling out 10 of its MPs.
And within the opposition, Mr Anwar’s support from Dr Mahathir’s Pejuang is still lacking.
Scenario 4 – Muhyiddin Yassin again
In this scenario, Bersatu with 31 lawmakers will have to agree to ditch Barisan Nasional (BN), GPS, and PAS – and go with the opposition bloc’s 105 MPs, for a total of 136 MPs.
How possible is this?
Given all the talk about confidence and supply agreements, there is a slim chance PH might agree to partner with Bersatu again, despite the betrayal in last year’s “Sheraton move”.
After all, last Friday, Mr Muhyiddin did try a last-ditch attempt to offer reforms in exchange for support to opposition MPs ahead of a confidence vote in Parliament next month.
His olive branch was rejected, but in days to come as parties ramp up negotiations, what happens next is anyone’s guess.
A breakdown of MPs in the coalitions or parties and factions are as follows:
• PH (88), PN (50), Umno 23 (led by Mr Ismail Sabri Yaakob), GPS (18), Umno 15 (led by Mr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi), Warisan (8), Pejuang (4), PSB (2), MCA (2), MIC (1), Muda (1), PBRS (1), Upko (1), PBS (1), independents (5)
• PH: DAP (42), PKR (35) and Amanah (11)
• PN: Bersatu (31), PAS (18) and STAR (1)
For the purpose of this article, the BN coalition (42) has been broken into the two Umno factions, one led by Mr Ismail (23) along with MCA (2), MIC (1) and PBRS (1), and the other led by Mr Zahid (15).
https://www.themalaysianinsight.com/s/333759
Muhyiddin Yassin, Malaysia's shortest-serving PM
Low-profile political insider Muhyiddin Yassin had a swift and unexpected rise to Malaysia's premiership -- but his time in power was fraught with instability, and he leaves office as the country's shortest-serving leader.
He resigned on Monday after months of bitter infighting in his coalition, and with public anger growing over a worsening coronavirus outbreak.
He took power after the collapse of a reformist alliance that had swept to power at landmark polls in 2018, outmanoeuvring more charismatic rivals Mahathir Mohamad and Anwar Ibrahim.
But being appointed by the king -- rather than having won an election -- he was accused of lacking legitimacy, while his parliamentary backing was razor-thin and he struggled to tame competing factions in his coalition.
The 74-year-old leaves office after just 17 months -- the shortest-serving prime minister since Malaysian independence in 1957.
Bridget Welsh, a Malaysia expert from the University of Nottingham, said his leadership was consumed by simply trying to survive and he botched the handling of the Covid-19 outbreak.
"His mode throughout was survivalist politics," she told AFP.
"He was disconnected from the reality of Covid, the sheer scope of trauma it has inflicted on Malaysia as it worsened... He did not prepare when the country needed to be prepared."
After avoiding a first wave of infections last year, Malaysia has been hit hard this year, with Muhyiddin's government accused of moving too slowly as the highly contagious Delta variant spread nationwide.
- Topsy-turvy politics -
In 1971, Muhyiddin joined the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), the lynchpin of a coalition that ruled Malaysia for six decades until its defeat in 2018.
He was chief minister of southern Johor state, a heartland of the country's ethnic Malay Muslim majority, and later served in senior posts in central government.
Muhyiddin was named deputy prime minister in 2009 when Najib Razak was premier.
But he later fell out with Najib after criticising him over the multi-billion-dollar scandal linked to state fund 1MDB, and was sacked in 2015.
Najib was accused of looting huge sums from 1MDB, allegations that contributed to his coalition's 2018 poll defeat.
He was convicted last year and sentenced to 12 years in jail, although he remains free pending an appeal.
Muhyiddin later joined a party set up by Mahathir, and helped to oust Najib and UMNO from power.
In a volte-face typical of Malaysia's turbulent politics, he joined hands with UMNO again last year to win enough support to become premier.
But when he refused to intervene in corruption cases against some of the party's MPs, several pulled support, leaving him without a parliamentary majority.
And crucially, the influential king, Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah, also turned against him.
Source: AFP
Muhyiddin Yassin appointed Malaysian caretaker PM after resignation is accepted by the king
KUALA LUMPUR: Mr Muhyiddin Yassin has been appointed Malaysia’s caretaker prime minister, after his resignation was accepted by the king on Monday (Aug 16).
In a statement issued by the national palace, it said that the king has received the letter of resignation from Mr Muhyiddin and the entire Cabinet with effect from Monday.
“Following his resignation, His Majesty has agreed that the Most Honorable Tan Sri Mahiaddin bin Md Yasin will serve as caretaker prime minister until a new prime minister is appointed."
Earlier, Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation Khairy Jamaluddin wrote on Instagram: "The Cabinet has tendered our resignation to the Agong. Thank you for the opportunity to, once again, serve the nation. May God bless Malaysia."
Senior Minister Hishammuddin Hussein tweeted: “It has been an honour and a privilege to serve our beloved country and her people.”
On Monday morning, Mr Muhyiddin chaired a Cabinet meeting, before proceeding for a royal audience with King Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah.
The prime minister's resignation came amid a political power play unfolding in Malaysia.
Early this month, a number of United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) lawmakers, led by party president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, withdrew their support for Mr Muhyiddin, compromising his already razor-thin parliamentary majority.
The prime minister initially insisted that he still commanded the parliamentary majority, and promised to prove his legitimacy through a motion of confidence scheduled to be tabled in the parliament on Sep 7.
Last Friday, Mr Muhyiddin appeared in a televised address to seek bipartisan support to survive the confidence motion.
However, his proposal was rejected by Pakatan Harapan (PH), which said that this was essentially an open admission that he had lost the support of the majority of the Lower House. The opposition bloc called for him to step down.
UMNO, too, said it would not consider offers from "a person who no longer has legitimacy", adding that his offer could be characterised as an "open bribery".
Mr Muhyiddin is president of the Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) leading the Perikatan Nasional government.
He was sworn in as the country's eighth prime minister on Mar 1, 2020 following a power tussle, which saw him pulling Bersatu out of then-ruling PH coalition and causing its collapse.
During his 17-month tenure as premier, Mr Muhyiddin has been criticised by some quarters for failing to lead the Malaysian government effectively in handling the COVID-19 pandemic.
Malaysia is in the midst of its deadliest COVID-19 wave, with daily infection numbers exceeding 20,000 cases.
In total, the country has seen more than 1.4 million COVID-19 cases and more than 12,000 deaths.
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/asia/malaysia-prime-minister-resign-muhyiddin-yassin-king-2115091
依斯迈任相代表恶政延续 林吉祥力荐安华
(早报讯)鉴于马来西亚首相慕尤丁下台已成定局,有消息指慕尤丁将推荐副首相、巫统副主席依斯迈沙比里出任新首相,民主行动党资深领袖林吉祥对此大表反对。
“当今大马”报道,林吉祥周一(16日)直言,“依斯迈沙比里出任首相,只会意味恶人政府和盗贼政治类似政策的延续,只会使马来西亚沦为一个失败国。”
林吉祥当天发文告说,依斯迈沙比里一直以来乃国盟政府的抗疫政策代言人,但在他的一系列失败决策下,国内疫情日益严重,至今马国累积冠病确诊病例超过140万起,累计死亡人数超过1万2500人。
他主张由希盟主席安华出任新首相,以便国家能够在新团队的领导下对抗冠病疫情,重燃马来西亚人的希望。
https://www.zaobao.com.sg/realtime/world/story20210816-1182720
Yep its official. Both Muhyiddin and his cabinet have tendered.
Wah Mudlaysia goes through three governments in 5 years, jskm.
Jib Kor approves of Muhyiddin's resignation.
Tiagong Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah will be taking over as interim PM until the dust settles.....