KUALA LUMPUR - Malaysia's parliament has been dissolved, according to Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yakob, who announced in a special televised address on Monday. This opens the door to immediate elections, almost a year before the general election deadline.
Datuk Seri Ismail said, "I had a meeting with Yang de-Pertuan Agong yesterday afternoon. He gave his consent to dissolve parliament on Monday for Articles 40(2)(b) and 55(2) of the federal constitution He said that with this announcement the mandate would be returned to the people.
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The Palace issued a statement by Mr Ismail two hours after his announcement, expressing the "disappointment at the current political development" of Sultan Abdullah Ahmad Shah, who "had no choice but to consent to the dissolution of Parliament". left" so that the power to "choose a stable government" could be returned to the people.
Consequently, the statement said, "His Excellency expresses his hope that the Election Commission will hold the 15th General Elections at the earliest, taking into account the northeast monsoon, which is expected to begin in mid-November 2022."
The premier's announcement comes more than a week after mounting pressure from party supporters of Umno president Zahid Hamidi, who has been vocal since the beginning of this year for the earliest possible vote.
The dissolution was widely speculated this week, especially after the premier had at least two meetings with Sultan Abdullah Ahmed Shah between Thursday and Sunday evening, right before the king flew to London for a week. Earlier
The request to dissolve the legislature must be made by the Constitutional Monarch of Malaysia, who has absolute discretion over the decision. If so, voters must vote within 60 days.
Elections are expected to be held in early November, to avoid clashing with the year-end monsoon, which has historically caused devastating floods.
Last year's floods killed 54 people, caused RM6 billion (S$1.9 billion) in damage, and in a worst-case scenario, 60,000 people were placed in evacuation centres. Sultan Abdullah on Sunday warned Malaysians to "reinforce themselves and prepare to face possible weather events".
On Thursday, the ruler requested that the Ministry of Environment and Water, Department of Drainage and Irrigation, and Meteorological Services inform him about the monsoon at the end of the year.
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According to information obtained by The Straits Times, both the Umno leadership and its Barisan National coalition are due to meet on Monday and Tuesday night, giving them a head start on planning a campaign for which no other major coalition is ready. Does not happen.
While the Pericaton Nacional (PN), the largest bloc in Mr Ismail's unstable and awkward regime coalition, is only finalizing its candidates and manifesto on 29 October, the palace is expected to not dissolve parliament until the monsoon ends in early 2019. has been requested.
Before the deadline in September 2023, the six state governments currently controlled by the PH and PN have said they will only hold state elections next year and will not follow suit if the federal legislature is dissolved.
As a result, parliamentary elections and only the three Umno-controlled states would coincide with the state elections of Pahang, Perlis and Perak. Critics allege that Zahid seeks to force a political change to influence his ongoing corruption trial, which is expected to result in a verdict early next year.
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Despite the Umno chief's camp insisting that elections should be held if his opponents are confused, it has led to massive victories in state elections in Melaka and Johor over the past year.
Former prime minister Najib Razak was sentenced to prison in August after losing his final appeal against a conviction related to the 1MDB scandal, which cost taxpayers billions of ringgit.
