Today-Nov 22
With Malaysia facing a hung parliament for the first time in its history, the formation of the new government now lies in the hands of the country’s king. Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah, the current monarch, has asked political party leaders to inform him of their choice of prime minister and alliances by 2pm on Tuesday (Nov 22), after extending the deadline by a day earlier on Monday. Mostly a figurehead, the king of Malaysia possesses limited powers, including the ability to name the prime minister that commands the confidence of the majority of the parliament. Malaysia’s king has had to exercise this power more frequently than usual in the last four years, having determined the appointment of the prime ministers in 2018 (Dr Mahathir Mohamad), 2020 (Mr Muhyiddin Yassin) and in 2021 (Mr Ismail Sabri Yaakob). However, analysts told TODAY that this power does not mean that the king can choose any candidate he likes to be the prime minister. Rather, his powers are limited by the country’s constitution to ascertaining which candidate has the support of the greatest number of members of parliament. In doing so, party leaders will have to submit the names of candidates who they believe can command a parliamentary majority. However, if it is not clear by the 2pm deadline on Tuesday who commands the majority support of parliament, the king will have to take other steps to determine who will be the country’s 10th prime minister, such as through interviewing every member of parliament, the analysts said. Read more at: https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/explainer-malaysias-king-parliament-future-prime-minister-government-2052666
