Malaysian PM Submits Resignation Letter To King

Mahathir Mohamad (Photo: Twitter @chedetofficial)

JAKARTA - Malaysian Prime Minister (PM) Mahathir Mohamad has filed his resignation to the king. Not only himself, the party under the auspices of Mahathir Mohamad also decided to leave the ruling party coalition.

Press Statement: Resignation as Prime Minister of Malaysia pic.twitter.com/naW2MajfsG

- Dr Mahathir Mohamad (@chedetofficial) February 24, 2020

Mohathir Mohamad's resignation came after a number of politicians from the ruling coalition held a meeting on Sunday, February 23 at a hotel near Kuala Lumpur. They discussed about the possibility of new alliances with members of the ruling party ousted the United Malays National Organization (UMNO).

The meeting prompted Anwar Ibrahim to accuse Mahathir's party, the United Indigenous Party, of being a traitor and planning a massive change in a powerful coalition. This effort is feared to thwart Anwar Ibrahim as prime minister in the future.

In fact, between them there is an agreement stating that later Anwar Ibrahim will be the prime minister. The agreement took place before the 2018 election.

In the agreement mentioned, later, Anwar Ibrahim will be the prime minister. Therefore, Anwar Ibrahim agreed to form a coalition with his former rival, Mahathir Mohamad, to win the 2018 election by defeating Najib Razak.

"We know there is an effort to overthrow PH (Pakatan Harapan) and form a new government," Anwar said, reported from The Guardian on Monday, February 24, 2020.

On the other hand, Mahathir needs more time for the transition from his government to Anwar Ibrahim, which he has never set a date for. However, the formation of a new coalition allowed Mahathir Mohamad to carry out his full-time office instead of handing it over to Anwar as promised earlier.

The turmoil of the Malaysian government occurred amid rising concerns over the spread of COVID-19 which has frightened investors, pushing the Kuala Lumpur benchmark to its lowest level. While the ringgit depreciated 0.7 percent for almost six months, the sharp decline in more than three years.

Anwar had previously served as deputy prime minister and finance minister for 22 years under Mahathir Mohamad's first term.

But Anwar was fired in 1998 after a disagreement over how to defend the economy against the Asian financial crisis. Anwar was jailed twice for sodomy charges which he claimed were false. It was released with a government pardon after the 2018 Election.

The long-running dispute between Mahathir Mohamad and Anwar Ibrahim is the last scene in a long-running political battle between the two most prominent political figures in Malaysia.