New Malaysian Prime Minister: Good times and bad times

Conservative, bold and flexible

That is what can be said about the new Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin. Mr. Yassin is known as a conservative politician with the view of “Malays first” in a multi-ethnic society. Born into a Muslim intellectual family, Muhyiddin Yassin joined the Malay nationalist United Malays National Organization (UMNO) in Pagoh state in 1971 after graduating with a degree in economics and Malay studies. Since then, he has been considered a key figure in the conservative faction of UMNO. He soon rose to become the party’s vice-president.

Within 15 years, he went from a member of the state executive council to the Chief Minister of Johor state, holding this position from 1986 to 1995. He then held many ministerial positions in previous governments during the period 1995 to 2015. These were Minister of Youth and Sports, Minister of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs, Minister of Agriculture, Minister of Trade and Industry, and Minister of Education.

Mr. Muhyiddin Yassin was also an important factor in helping former Prime Minister Najib Razak win the 2008 election. This helped him become a right-hand man for Mr. Najib as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education. At this stage, both Mr. Najib and Muhyiddin Yassin received the support of former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, also a veteran member of the UMNO Party.

However, with his conservative and principled views, Muhyiddin Yassin has gone against any policy he deems inappropriate. For example, when he took office as Education Minister, Muhyiddin did not hesitate to abolish the policy that was praised under Mahathir in the 1990s, of teaching Science and Mathematics in English in public schools. Muhyiddin made it a rule to teach Malay as the main language in all subjects, on the grounds that this was what conservative parents wanted.

New Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin signs a document on his first day at the Prime Minister's Office in Putrajaya on March 2, 2020. Photo: AFP

When the 1MDB scandal broke in 2015, Muhyiddin also publicly called for a closer look into Najib's involvement, in contrast to most of his cabinet colleagues who chose to defend Najib. According to Channel New Asia, this disagreement led to his expulsion from UMNO, after which the politician joined Bersatu and became the executive chairman of the party founded by Mahathir Mohamad. After Bersatu joined the People's Justice Party (PKR), Democratic Action Party (DAP) and Amanah to form PH, he was elected as the coalition's deputy chairman. Muhyiddin served as home minister in the Mahathir Mohamad administration until Mahathir resigned on February 24.

Observers say it is no coincidence that Mr. Muhyiddin was appointed Prime Minister in the context of political turmoil in Malaysia. A person with extensive experience and flexible adaptability like Mr. Muhyiddin is expected to "heal" the deep cracks that are currently covering the Malaysian political scene. However, this is certainly the biggest challenge in this politician's career.

Mr. Muhyiddin Yassin was a deputy in the government of former Prime Minister Najib Razak (right). Photo: AFP

The difficult road

Regional media have called Mr Muhyiddin the winner of the contest between Mr Mahathir Mohamad and Mr Anwar Ibrahim. But it is still too early to know whether this victory will bear fruit.

Muhyiddin Yassin has been elected as Malaysia’s new prime minister, but there is no guarantee that he will win the support of a majority of MPs in parliament. Just an hour before the inauguration, Bersatu founder and leader Mahathir Mohamad declared that Muhyiddin was not a “legitimate prime minister” because he did not have the necessary support from MPs.

Previously, Mr. Mahathir Mohamad said that there were a total of 114 MPs (out of 222 MPs) to nominate him to continue as Prime Minister. This will most likely lead to chaos in the coming days when the forces supporting former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad claim that he is the one with the necessary number of seats in the lower house (at least 112/222 seats) to have the right to become Prime Minister. It is possible that this force will push for a vote of no confidence in the lower house. The Malaysian House of Representatives is expected to start meeting from March 9. This will be the next "front" of struggle between factions supporting different figures in the political arena.

Even if he can overcome the “battle” in the House of Representatives, there are still many challenges ahead, including how the allocation of leadership positions in the party will be carried out, when UMNO is the force with the most seats?

In the election two years ago, the PH coalition that includes Bersatu came to power partly because voters wanted to “oust” UMNO politicians who had been accused of “corruption and nepotism”. Now, Mr. Muhyiddin will have to put leaders of factions, including UMNO, in key leadership positions in the new government, which is sure to cause a backlash among Malaysian voters and give reason for Muhyiddin’s opponents to attack.

So perhaps how long this political instability and uncertainty will last and how negative the impact will be depends on how long it takes the new prime minister to gain the support of a majority of members of parliament.

View of Malaysia's capital Kuala LumpurPhoto: AFP

On the Malaysian side, many opinions hope that the government will pay attention to their interests, leading the country out of economic difficulties instead of political parties plunging into "factional wars". In addition, the economic issue also poses a challenge. Mr. Muhyiddin came to power in a context of political instability that has significantly affected the country's socio-economic situation, combined with difficulties caused by the Covid-19 outbreak as well as the impacts of the global economic recession in recent years. Therefore, the goal of maintaining macroeconomic stability is considered the top priority of the new Prime Minister Muhyiddin and also a big challenge for him to gain the trust of the people.