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Malaysia's king appoints Muhyiddin Yassin as prime minister
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Muhyiddin Yassin (center), president of Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia or Malaysian United Indigenous Party, arrives at the party headquarters in Kuala Lumpur on Feb. 24, 2020. He was named as Malaysia's new prime minister Saturday, royal officials said (AFP/Mohd Rasfan )
M
uhyiddin Yassin will become Malaysia's next prime minister, the country's king announced on Saturday, saying he may have the majority support among lawmakers in parliament.
The appointment follows this week's shock resignation of Mahathir Mohamad, 94, as premier in a move that plunged the country into crisis.
Mahathir had said earlier on Saturday he had won the backing of old rival Anwar Ibrahim for his return as the candidate for the alliance that collapsed with his resignation on Monday.
Muhyiddin will be sworn in on Sunday, the palace said in a statement. Muhyiddin, 72, was the home minister in the Mahathir government. Before that, he was the country's deputy prime minister in the administration of Najib Razak, who was defeated by Mahathir in the 2018 national election.
The monarch made the decision after receiving representations from all party leaders and independent members of parliament, the palace said in a statement.
"The king is of the opinion that the member of parliament who possibly has the support of the majority of members of parliament is Muhyiddin Yassin," the palace said.
"His majesty has decreed that the process of appointing a prime minister cannot be delayed.. [and] this is the best decision for all," the statement said.
