Sabri poised to become Malaysia PM
Former Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob moved closer yesterday to forming the next government after securing a parliamentary majority from the same coalition that collapsed earlier this week.
Muhyiddin Yassin resigned as prime minister on Monday after conceding he had lost support from his alliance, bringing to an end a fraught 17 months in office.
If confirmed, Ismail Sabri's appointment would mark the return of the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) party to leadership, three years after it lost a general election because of corruption allegations.
Muhyiddin yesterday said Sabri has the support.
The support was conditional on Ismail Sabri ensuring that the new cabinet members were free from graft charges, he said in a statement.
Ismail Sabri, 61, has the support of 114 lawmakers out of the 222-seat parliament, UMNO lawmaker Ahmad Maslan said on Twitter.
King Al-Sultan Abdullah, the constitutional monarch who will be appointing a new premier, is scheduled to meet with the country's other senior royals today. A decision on the new government head is likely to be announced after that.
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