Malaysian PM Muhyiddin says he is focusing on Covid-19 and economy, not Anwar's move

Malaysian PM Muhyiddin Yassin said he wanted to focus his energy on managing the Covid-19 pandemic and the struggling economy. PHOTO: REUTERS

KUALA LUMPUR - Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin on Tuesday (Oct 13) declined to drawn into what transpired in a morning meeting between opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim and the Malaysian King, where Datuk Seri Anwar claimed he has majority support from MPs to form a new government.

Tan Sri Muhyiddin said he wanted to focus his energy on managing the Covid-19 pandemic and the struggling economy.

"I don't want to comment on what Anwar did at the palace. I leave it to the best judgement of the Agong (King); he has his own way of doing things as provided by the Constitution," the premier said, referring to Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin.

"My focus is on Covid-19 and managing the economy."

PM Muhyiddin spent an hour on Facebook Live fielding questions from local media about the pandemic and the government's response.

Only one question near the end of the session asked about the King-Anwar meeting.

Mr Muhyiddin said at the start of the session which began at 5pm that he knew many journalists are keen for his comments about the meeting at Istana Negara. But, he said, he would focus instead on the "biggest issues" facing the country - the Covid-19 pandemic and its impact on the country.

During the press conference, Mr Muhyiddin mostly fielded questions regarding the Covid-19 pandemic and the conditional movement control order (CMCO) which comes into effect in Kuala Lumpur, Selangor and Putrajaya effective after midnight on Tuesday.

"Due to the high population in these areas, we have noticed that cases are continuing to climb even in some yellow zones," Mr Muhyiddin said, in justifying the movement curbs that would affect some 7.6 million people in Malaysia's biggest urban agglomeration, which is over 20 per cent of the country's population.

His government was previously questioned about its decision to implement a CMCO for the whole of greater Klang Valley instead of taking a targeted approach at several redzones.

The National Security Council (NSC) later released a set of guidelines that seemed to indicate a more relaxed approach to the movement curbs in Malaysia's capital and its surrounding districts.

It said that dine-in in restaurants will still be allowed, for a maximum of 2 people per date, and that Kuala Lumpur and Selangor will be seen as a single zone while travelling.

There were 660 coronavirus cases recorded on Tuesday, the second highest record for the country. A record number of 691 cases were logged last Tuesday (Oct 6).

Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.