Malaysia has new prime minister

Malaysia’s King Al-Sultan Abdullah has named Ismail Sabri Yaakob, Vice President of the United Malaysia National Organisation (UMNO) as the country’s new Prime Minister, the palace said in a statement.

Malaysia's newly appointed Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob

The appointment decision was made after King Al-Sultan Abdullah held a meeting with other royal rulers on August 20.

The fact that Ismail became the 9th Prime Minister of Malaysia is not surprising because he received the support of 114 MPs out of 220 MPs in the House of Representatives.

UMNO Secretary General Ahmad Maslan said Ismail is eligible to become the Prime Minister of Malaysia, based on his experience in running the country in difficult times. He held the position of Defense Minister from March 2020 before being appointed Deputy Prime Minister in July 2021.

Malaysia's House of Representatives has 222 seats, but currently has only 220 MP as two MPs passed away in 2020. As such, Ismail needs the support of at least 111 MPs in order to become the Prime Minister.

Former Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin resigned on August 16 after losing majority support in parliament due to infighting among his political coalition.

Ismail’s appointment marked the return of the UMNO which lost the 2018 general elections./.

VNA