PAS assemblyman sworn in as new Kedah chief minister after Mukhriz resigns
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State opposition leader Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor in Malaysia on May 15, 2020.
PHOTO: G.C.TAN/THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
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ALOR SETAR (THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) - Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS) assemblyman Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor was sworn in as the chief minister of Malaysia's northern state of Kedah on Sunday (May 17).
Mr Sanusi took his oath of office before the state's sultan, Sultan Sallehuddin Sultan Badlishah, in a private room at Wisma Darul Aman in Alor Setar at about 3.05pm.
Mr Sanusi's appointment came after Datuk Seri Mukhriz Mahathir, the son of former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad, resigned as the Kedah Menteri Besar hours earlier.
It followed a meeting the sultan held with all of the state's 36 legislators on Friday, during which he determined that Mr Mukhriz no longer had the support of the majority.
Just over two years after helming the top job, Mr Mukhriz lost his grip after two Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) assemblymen jumped ship on Tuesday (May 12) and pledged their support to Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin's Perikatan Nasional (PN) coalition, The Star reported.
"With this announcement, I relinquish my position with immediate effect," Mr Mukhriz said in a statement earlier Sunday.
On Tuesday, two assemblymen from PKR, Mr Azman Nasrudin, who represents the Lunas seat, and Dr Robert Ling Kui Ee, who represents Sidam, quit the party and threw their support behind the PN government.
On the same day, Mr Sanusi announced that 19 out of 36 Kedah assemblymen had lost confidence in Mr Mukhriz's leadership.
Talk then started circulating that Mr Sanusi was the man for the top job after 23 state assemblymen proposed him as the new Menteri Besar.
The fall of the Kedah state assembly to the PN followed those of Johor, Melaka and Perak states recently.
These developments took place in the last two months after the toppling of the Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition at the federal level in late February, when Tun Dr Mahathir unexpectedly resigned on Feb 24.
With Kedah gone, PH will retain only the state assemblies of Penang, Selangor and Negeri Sembilan, while its political ally Parti Warisan Sabah continues to rule Sabah state.
PN will rule the other nine of Malaysia's 13 states.
Mr Mukhriz, 55, had continued as Kedah's Menteri Besar under the PH, but with a smaller majority after PN took over at the federal level.
