France24
24 Nov 2022, 13:07 GMT+10
Malaysia's king named reformist opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim as the country's Prime Minister on Thursday, ending days of uncertainties after divisive general elections produced a hung Parliament.
"After taking into consideration the views of Their Royal Highnesses the Malay Rulers, His Majesty has given consent to appoint Anwar Ibrahim as the 10th Prime Minister of Malaysia," the statement said.
A general election on Saturday ended in an unprecedented hung parliament with neither of two main alliances, one led by Anwar and the other ex-premier Muhyiddin Yassin, immediately able to secure enough seats in parliament to form a government.
Anwar's appointment caps a three-decade long journey from heir apparent to a prisoner convicted of sodomy, to longtime opposition leader.
His Alliance of Hope coalition led Saturday's election with 82 seats, short of the 112 needed for a majority. Former Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin's right-leaning National Alliance won 73 seats, with its ally Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party emerging as the biggest single party with 49 seats.
The decision on the prime minister came down to King Al-Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah, after both Anwar and Muhyiddin missed his Tuesday afternoon deadline to put together an alliance.
The constitutional monarch plays a largely ceremonial role but can appoint a premier he believes will command a majority in parliament.
Anwar finally emerged victorious after other smaller blocs agreed to support him for a unity government. His rise to the top will ease anxieties in the multiracial nation over greater Islamisation under Muhyiddin and spark hopes that reforms for better governance will resume.
In the course of a long political career, the 75-year-old Anwar has time and again been denied the premiership despite getting within striking distance over the years: he was deputy prime minister in the 1990s and the official prime minister-in-waiting in 2018.
In between, he spent nearly a decade in jail for sodomy and corruption in what he says were politically motivated charges aimed at ending his career.
The uncertainty over the election threatened to prolong political instability in the Southeast Asian country, which has had three prime ministers in as many years, and risks delaying policy decisions needed to foster economic recovery.
Malay Muslims are two-thirds of Malaysia's 33 million people, who include large ethnic Chinese and Indian minorities. Many rural Malays fear they may lose their privileges with greater pluralism under Anwar
(FRANCE 24 with AFP, AP and Reuters)
Originally published on France24
Get a daily dose of China National News news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to China National News.
More InformationNEW YORK, New York - Global stock indices closed with divergent performances on Tuesday, as investors weighed corporate earnings, central...
TORONTO, Canada: Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney announced late on June 29 that trade negotiations with the U.S. have recommenced...
Vancouver, Canada: A high-stakes legal showdown is brewing in the world of athleisure. Lululemon, the Canadian brand known for its...
LONDON, U.K.: British oil giant Shell has denied reports that it is in talks to acquire rival oil company BP. The Wall Street Journal...
NEW YORK, New York - U.S. stock markets closed firmly in positive territory to start the week Monday, with the S&P 500 and Dow Jones...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: On Friday, President Donald Trump announced that he was halting trade discussions with Canada due to its decision...
BEIJING, China: China's national soccer team may struggle to stir excitement, but its humanoid robots are drawing cheers — and not...
]LONDON, U.K.: A World Health Organization (WHO) expert group investigating the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic released its final...
FRANKFURT, Germany: Germany has become the latest country to challenge Chinese AI firm DeepSeek over its data practices, as pressure...
SYDNEY, NSW, Australia - , Australian Federal Police (AFP) have shut down a secret drug lab in Sydney's west and seized more than 100kg...
(New York) - China's government has erased Hong Kong's freedoms since imposing the draconian National Security Law on June 30, 2020,...
(250702) -- TOKYO, July 2, 2025 (Xinhua) -- Participants pose for a group photo before the opening ceremony of the 2025 Trilateral...