Mahathir made interim PM as govt loses majority

Just hours after resigning as Malaysia's prime minister, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad was back at the helm yesterday as interim leader of a government that no longer commands a majority in Parliament.

Malaysia's King, Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin, accepted the 94-year-old leader's resignation but appointed him caretaker Prime Minister, the chief secretary to the government, Datuk Seri Mohd Zuki Ali, said in a statement.

He added that Dr Mahathir will continue to run the country's administration until a new prime minister and Cabinet are appointed.

All ministerial appointments were also cancelled with effect from yesterday as a result of the prime minister's resignation, the chief secretary said in a separate statement.

Dozens of lawmakers left the Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition yesterday after Dr Mahathir's resignation, in what was widely seen as a move to form a new ruling pact with opposition parties Umno and Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS).

Dr Mahathir's Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (PPBM), which has 26 MPs, exited PH, while 11 MPs from Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) left the party to form an independent bloc. This leaves PH and its allies with 102 MPs, short of the 112 needed to form a majority in Malaysia's 222-seat Parliament.

Speculation had mounted over the weekend that it was Dr Mahathir who engineered this plot to form a so-called backdoor government by ditching his reformist allies in PH and joining forces with Umno and PAS.

But he confounded his critics when he also resigned as chairman of his party yesterday. Sources said he quit to protest against PPBM president Muhyiddin Yassin's decision to abandon PH and instead work with former ruling party Umno in a new government.

Meanwhile, leaders from the three remaining PH parties - PKR, Democratic Action Party (DAP) and Parti Amanah Negara - yesterday voiced their support for Dr Mahathir and said he had resigned as premier as a matter of principle, because he could not face forming a political union with those behind the plot.

"He (Dr Mahathir) doesn't want to work with Umno but Bersatu feels otherwise," said former finance minister Lim Guan Eng, who is DAP secretary-general. "The problem lies with not only Bersatu, but also those from PKR... who want to work with Umno and other opposition parties to form a backdoor government."

Mr Lim referred to the "treachery of some PH leaders" and named former economic affairs minister Azmin Ali, who left PKR with 10 other MPs aligned with him, as one of those behind the plot.

PKR president Anwar Ibrahim, whose plan to succeed Dr Mahathir as prime minister would be thwarted by the new pact, also defended Dr Mahathir yesterday.

He said he had tried to persuade Dr Mahathir not to resign. "He made it very clear, in no way would he work with those in the past regime," said Datuk Seri Anwar.

Datuk Seri Azmin issued a statement last night denouncing accusations that he was a traitor. He referred to previous calls from within PKR for Dr Mahathir to set a date for handing over the reins to Mr Anwar as a conspiracy to bring down the prime minister, and said his move to leave the party was a "proactive step" taken to foil the conspiracy.

Apart from a statement confirming his resignation as prime minister, Dr Mahathir himself has not announced the reasons behind his decision or if there are plans to restore PH's majority in Parliament.

Meanwhile, a leader from the Umno-led Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition has said it could achieve the numbers needed to govern if it teamed up with other opposition parties and those which had left PH, reported the Malay Mail.

Malaysia Indian Congress deputy president M. Saravanan told reporters yesterday that the new coalition's leaders would be seeking an audience with the King soon.

"The situation is very assuring. In the nearest time, we will be seeking an audience with His Majesty... BN always had the numbers," he said without providing details.