KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 26 — The Cabinet is expected to meet this morning amid speculation about the political future of the PM and his government, just a day after the King decreed there was no need for the Emergency rule Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin had sought to combat the Covid-19 pandemic for which critics had denounce as an excuse to hold on to power.

Muhyiddin held a late night meeting yesterday at his Damansara Heights home here with some of his ministers and closest aides after the King’s decision was announced in the evening, even as the country was roiled by rumours that he was contemplating resignation.

Ministers and aides did not stop to offer comments to waiting journalists after the meeting, but they are expected to convene a meeting this morning in Putrajaya.

The prime minister issued a statement just before midnight yesterday which did not offer any suggestions he would be quitting. In the statement, Muhyiddin thanked the King for having trust in his government.


Some observers and analysts have pointed out that while he failed in his bid to call for a state of emergency, he nevertheless got the nod to table the national Budget next month from the King yesterday.

But all this means is that once the country manages to bring the number of Covid-19 cases down, the political manoeuvring for power will continue, several analysts told Malay Mail.

“The present political situation is indeed very delicate. By advising the King to proclaim emergency but not obtaining it, what’s left of Muhyiddin’s democratic credentials has taken a big hit and his opponents would certainly take advantage of the popular discontent to try to push him over the edge,” said Senior Fellow at the Singapore Institute of International Affairs Oh Ei Sun.

“But the King’s call for the Budget to be passed would also have to be heeded by them, as feudalistic fealty remains a mainstay of Malaysian politics,” he added.

Rumours were rife from Friday that Muhyiddin would seek to invoke “emergency powers” to prop up his administration that has come under challenge from Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

This is ostensibly to prevent a general election called during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Muhyiddin rushed to meet the King in Pahang on Friday which then led to a meeting of the Malay Rulers yesterday.

The Opposition had planned to table a no confidence motion against Muhyiddin at the next session of Parliament which is also when the Budget will be tabled.


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PETALING JAYA: A Syrian refugee who spent seven months stranded at the klia2 terminal in 2018 has spoken out about the need for reforms in Malaysia’s immigration detention centres.

Hassan al-Kontar said Malaysia’s refugee policy lags far behind that of most developed countries, and many Malaysians were “very misinformed” about what goes on at detention centres.

“The immigration officers and police in the detention centre should be civilised. They should care about human rights,” he told FMT.


“They jailed a 12-year old Rohingya boy with me in the detention centre. A kid,” he said. “There were women with babies three or four months old in the women’s cells. That’s not acceptable, by any standard.”

Hassan said Malaysia had a long way to go in handling refugees and asylum seekers.

However, despite his nine-month ordeal in Malaysia, he insists he still harbours some fondness for the country.

For nearly seven months in 2018, Hassan lived at klia2’s arrival hall. He survived off donated airline meals, showered in bathrooms for the disabled, and slept beneath stairwells.

He was stuck at the airport in limbo, unable to return to his war-torn homeland of Syria, and without the papers to enter Malaysia.


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PETALING JAYA: A PKR MP has called for Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin to either resign or sack two of his senior ministers, to officially close the “state of emergency crisis chapter”.

In a Facebook post today, Subang MP Wong Chen said there was persistent talk that Muhyiddin was being influenced by two particular senior ministers.

He claimed that in the history of Malaysian politics, this was the first time that the rulers had rejected a prime minister’s proposal.

“Either the prime minister resigns or he sacks the said two senior ministers for this audacious attempt to subvert democracy in Malaysia.


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PETALING JAYA:  Yang di-Pertuan Agong Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah has decided against declaring an Emergency, saying there is no need for one in any part of the country.

In a statement, Comptroller of the Royal Household Ahmad Fadil Shamsuddin confirmed that Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin had proposed that an Emergency be declared.

“After refining the proposal and discussing the matter with the Malay rulers and taking into account the situation in the country, Sultan Abdullah feels that the government has succeeded in handling the pandemic well.”

The King also believes in the ability of the government, under Muhyiddin’s leadership, to continue implementing policies and actions to contain the spread of Covid-19.

“Sultan Abdullah is of the view that there is no need for an Emergency to be declared for the country or any parts of Malaysia.

“Still, His Majesty wishes to remind politicians to stop politicking, which can disrupt the stability of the country’s administration.”
The King also believes there is no need for MPs to continue with irresponsible actions which can affect the stability of the government.


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KUCHING: A group of Sarawakian volunteers, most of them housewives, have joined the fight against Covid-19 by making personal protective equipment (PPE) sets for frontliners in Sabah.

The initiative is driven by Tanoti, a social enterprise which trains and employs rural women to weave songkets. This helps them to earn income and have a platform to sell the traditional handicrafts.

Over the weekend, Tanoti gathered 24 volunteers to sew 1,000 PPEs for frontliners in neighbouring Sabah, which is the worst-hit state with close to 10,000 Covid-19 cases recorded to date.

Jacqueline Fong, who co-founded the company, said each PPE set includes an isolation gown, hood cover and a pair of shoe covers.

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