Malaysia’s Dr Mahathir expects to be sworn in today

MALAYSIAN prime minister-designate Dr Mahathir Mohamad said he expects to be sworn in today, insisting he had the majority support of newly-elected parliamentarians from the opposition coalition.

“There is an urgency here, we need to form the government now, today,” Mahathir told reporters.

The Pakatan Harapan (Alliance of Hope) led by Dr Mahathir’s defeated the long-ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition in Wednesday’s polls, ending six decades of the ousted ruling government’s rule since Malaysia’s independence from Britain.

Dr. Mahathir said his coalition will have the support of 135 members of Malaysia’s 222-seat parliament following the election, entitling him to form a government.

However, the Election Commission’s results show that the alliance, which contested under the People’s Justice Party Banner, officially gained 113 seats. Additionally, the alliance has a loose pact with the Sabah-based Warisan party that gained eight seats, which brings the total to 121 seats. The alliance also has the support of one independent candidate from the Batu constituency in Kuala Lumpur.

“Currently, there is no government of Malaysia,” he said.

Earlier, outgoing Prime Minister Najib Razak said it was up to the king, Sultan Muhammad V, to appoint a prime minister as no coalition had secured a simple majority to form the government.

“The candidate chosen by Pakatan Harapan (Alliance of Hope) as prime minister, that candidate you may have heard is Dr Mahathir Mohamad,” he quipped.