Malaysia’s Parliament allows vote on PM Muhyiddin’s leadership

KUALA LUMPUR, May 8, 2020, The Straits Times. Malaysia’s Parliament will allow a vote of no confidence in Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin moved by his predecessor Mahathir Mohamad, although it did not indicate if it would be held in the upcoming one-day sitting on May 18, The Straits Times reported.

Speaker Ariff Yusof said on Friday (May 8) the motion was in accordance with regulations.

The Speaker on Thursday rejected a separate confidence vote in Tun Mahathir, who resigned as premier amidst a political imbroglio in February, as unconstitutional.

“As Speaker, I must study and ensure all motions submitted meet and abide by the Standing Orders to uphold the supremacy of the law,” he said in a statement.

However, Tan Sri Ariff only said the motion was accepted to be “brought to the upcoming House of Representatives meeting” without specifying if it would be on May 18, where only the King’s annual opening speech has been scheduled, or in July when Parliament is due to reconvene.

The two confidence motions were submitted this week on the back of growing instability within the two-month-old Perikatan Nasional (PN) ruling alliance which was formed after Tan Sri Muhyiddin bolted from the previous Pakatan Harapan coalition.

Tan Sri Muhyiddin who took power on Mar 1 after leading defectors from PH to form the government along with former opposition parties just 22 months after the Umno-led Barisan Nasional’s first ever general election defeat.

The PN has been saddled with constant bickering over the spoils of victory and the handling of the coronavirus pandemic.