Anwar bids for PM’s job amid turmoil
KUALA LUMPUR: Anwar Ibrahim’s name has been put forward for Malaysian prime minister by his supporters after the shock resignation of his alliance partner and on-off rival, Mahathir Mohamad, members of Anwar’s party said yesterday.
The struggle between Dr Mahathir, 94, and Mr Anwar, 72, who formed a surprise pact to win a 2018 election, has shaped politics in the Southeast Asian country for more than two decades and is at the root of the latest turmoil. Dr Mahathir, the world’s oldest head of government, resigned on Monday but was immediately named by the king as interim prime minister. To try to end the crisis, the king has been meeting all 222 elected MPs over two days. Those in the meetings said they were asked to name their favoured prime minister or whether they wanted fresh elections.
The members of Mr Anwar’s Parti
Keadilan Rakyat, or the People’s Justice Party, said his name had been submitted to the king. The party has 39 seats and alliance partners could potentially give it another 62. “God willing, everything goes well,” Mr Anwar told reporters after meeting the king. “It is the prerogative of the king. So I will leave it entirely to his discretion and wisdom.”
While some politicians have openly voiced support for Dr Mahathir to stay in office, it was not clear whether enough of them would give him their backing. In meetings with leaders, Dr Mahathir on Tuesday proposed a unity government cutting across party lines that could have given him greater authority than during a spell as prime
minister from 1981 until his retirement in 2003. But the idea was rejected by an alliance of four parties including the United Malays National Organisation, which ruled Malaysia for six decades until being defeated by Dr Mahathir’s coalition in 2018. The parties said they had told the king they wanted a new election instead.