Muhyiddin Yassin Named PM in Malaysia

Malaysia’s king named former interior minister Muhyiddin Yassin as the new prime minister on Saturday. The decision came five days after the resignation of 94-year-old Mahathir, the world’s oldest head of government, who broke an alliance with Anwar, 72, that swept the former ruling party from power in a 2018 election victory.

The latest crisis was sparked by a tussle for power between Mahathir and Anwar that has shaped Malaysian politics for two decades. Mahathir had promised to hand power to Anwar after the 2018 election, but no date had been set, according to CNBC News.

Muhyiddin Yassin Named PM in Malaysia

Meanwhile, Mr Muhyiddin's rise will inevitably return Malaysia to an era where ethnic Malays hold almost all positions of power and put their interests and rights above those of the minority Chinese or Indian populations.

The new ruling alliance includes three wholly ethnic Malay parties, UMNO, Bersatu and the Islamist PAS, and only a handful of Chinese or Indian Malay MPs.

Although Dr. Mahathir and Mr Anwar said they had reunited on Saturday and now had majority support, the King announced Mr Muhyiddin as the candidate.

According to ABC News, many Malaysians are incensed that their decision to oust the UMNO-led government less than two years ago has been overturned without any form of democratic vote.

On other hand, hundreds of protesters gathered in Kuala Lumpur at the weekend to protest against the King's decision. They're likely to continue if the new government tries to delay or stymie a vote on a no-confidence motion.

Noteworthy, Mr Muhyiddin, 72, a Malay nationalist politician backed by the corruption-tarnished former ruling party, UMNO, the United Malays National Party, was sworn in after convincing Malaysia's King that he, not Dr. Mahathir, had the majority support of Malaysia's 222 parliamentarians.