Malaysia: Opposition leader makes U-turn on resigning as party chief

Muhyiddin Yassin, the former prime minister of Malaysia, announced on Saturday that, one day after he had vowed to resign from the position, he intended to run for the party leadership in the upcoming internal elections. Given that the former premier is one of the few leaders of the Malay-dominated opposition alliance with widespread support, Muhyiddin had stated it was time to hand over leadership of his Bersatu party to a new group, casting doubt on who would head the opposition alliance. At an address at the annual conference of Bersatu, which leads the Perikatan Nasional opposition group along with a hardline Islamist party, Muhyiddin declared, “I will stay for the last term (as Bersatu president).” Muhyiddin, who ruled Malaysia for 17 months in 2020 and 2021, claimed that he spoke with his wife before deciding to continue. But whether any Bersatu members will run against him for the party’s presidential nomination in the upcoming elections is still up in the air. The opposition gained ground in August regional polls and the national election of last year among Malaysia’s overwhelming ethnic Malay Muslim population. Its appeal to younger and more conservative Malays is perceived as a challenge to Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s progressive, multiracial coalition. Since Bersatu’s founding in 2016, Muhyiddin has presided over the opposition Perikatan Nasional group in addition to serving as president of the group. (With agency inputs)