Malaysia’s opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim to be next prime minister

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ISTANBUL (AA) – Malaysia’s Council of Rulers on Thursday decided to back opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim as the country’s 10th prime minister.

The decision came after a meeting of the nine-member Council of Rulers, led by King Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah, in Kuala Lumpur after days of political deadlock.

Former deputy prime minister, Anwar Ibrahim, 75, will be sworn in as Malaysia’s prime minister at 5p.m. (0900GMT) Thursday, Malaysiakini news website reported.

Results of Malaysia’s 15th general elections held on Nov. 19 threw up a hung parliament with Ibrahim-led Alliance of Hope, or Pakatan Harapan (PH), securing most seats in the parliament but short of forming a government on its own.

The PH secured 82 seats while former Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin-led National Alliance or Perikatan Nasional (PN) got 73 seats.

The King had met the two leaders on Tuesday and suggested a unity government, but Yassin rejected it.

Later, the monarch called eight other council members for a meeting early today to end the deadlock.

Support from the National Front, or Barisan Nasional (BN), with 30 lawmakers, is seen to be a decisive factor in the new setup.

Another bloc Sarawak Parties Alliance, or Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS), with 23 seats had indicated it would support the Yassin-led group but was indecisive.

Any party or alliance will have to secure the support of at least 112 lawmakers in a 222-seat house to be the leader of the parliament.