Jakarta, CNN Indonesia —
Minister of Higher Education Malaysia, Noraini Ahmad, resigned from the Prime Minister’s cabinet Muhyiddin Yassin, in the midst of political turmoil and a surge in Covid-19 cases.
Noraini resignation in line with the stance of his party, the United National Malays Organization (UMNO), to withdraw support from the government Muhyiddin who violates the law in determining the status of a national emergency due to a surge in cases Covid-19, as reported Associated Press, Friday (6/8).
Malaysia’s Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, Shamsul Anuar Nasarah, also resigned from his post as a form of loyalty to UMNO, which rejected the central government’s decision on the Covid-19 emergency status.
UMNO is currently the party with the most seats in the Malaysian parliament, with 38 members. So far, there are eight UMNO members in parliament who have signed a statement withdrawing support from Muhyiddin.
However, Muhyiddin conveyed to the King of Malaysia, Sultan Abdullah, that he was still confident of getting parliamentary support. According to Muhyiddin, in a meeting with Sultan Abdullah on Wednesday, the king agreed on his proposal to hold a vote during the reopening of the parliamentary session on September 6.
At a press conference today, Muhyiddin said he was ready and not afraid to face the vote. However, he warned that a sudden change in government would undermine efforts or worsen the handling of the pandemic.
“Can the country face various problems if there is a change (of the government) or political chaos?” said Muhyiddin.
Muhyiddin was elected PM in March 2020 after Mahathir Mohamad’s government backed by the Pakatan Harapan coalition collapsed when the Bersatu Party, as a member of the coalition, withdrew its support.
Muhyiddin, who is also from the United Party, formed the National Association coalition by including UMNO. However, it is said that UMNO is not happy as if it is under the position of the Bersatu Party even though they have a majority in parliament.
Muhyiddin declared a national emergency to fight Covid-19 without parliamentary approval in January. Opponents say Muhyiddin used the state of emergency which ended on August 1 as a loophole to avoid a vote in parliament on support for his government.
The opposition accuses Muhyiddin of delaying voting on a no-confidence motion in parliament until next September with the aim of rallying support. They warned that Muhyiddin could mobilize all government officials, including the Malaysian Corruption Eradication Commission, to pressure parliamentarians into giving political support.
On the other hand, the anger of the population is increasing because the number of Covid-19 cases in Malaysia continues to rise and has now reached 1.22 million. Even today, the addition of Covid-19 cases in Malaysia reached 20,889.
(ayp/ayp)
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