Muhyiddin says priority now is Malaysia’s political stability, promises to return mandate ‘when time is right’

KOTA KINABALU, March 22 — Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin today acknowledged that Malaysians are fed up with the constant politicking in the country and said he is concentrating on providing political stability and ensuring the government operates smoothly during the pandemic.

As such, he said he will not respond to his political rivals with their taunts.

“I know, the people are fed up with politics. They don’t want to hear anymore. It is about their livelihood, especially now, in the face of this pandemic.

“My approach is to provide political stability. This is why it seems I am not talking much. I do not want to respond to all the politicking. It is better to spend time focusing on administering the country, and when the time is right, we will return the mandate to the people,” he said during a town hall session with Sabah civil servants here.

Muhyiddin said his Perikatan Nasional government was formed following an unfortunate political crisis and said he is intentionally staying out of the politicking as it was the leaders’ role to create a conducive environment to get cooperation from all sides.

He was replying to a member of the audience who asked how he plans to rebuild faith in Malaysia with the current political situation in disarray.

Muhyiddin said Malaysia is facing three big challenges — the pandemic health crisis, its economic fallout, and political instability. He said he is dealing with all three simultaneously.

“What we need is a sense of stability. We need to initiate that, but we need others to be involved to be part of the solution. No one party can provide stability on its own,” he said.

Muhyiddin said it is crucial for Malaysia to have stability in order to attract foriegn investors and get the economy up and running.

“It’s been a year of instability now, we need solutions to this problem,” he said.

He reiterated that when the time is right, he will call for a general election.

“We will return the mandate to the people for them to decide then,” he said.

Muhyiddin, who became prime minister last year after the collapse of the elected Pakatan Harapan administration, has been repeatedly criticised for forming government through the “back door”.

His detractors have repeatedly claimed he lacks legitimacy and insist he does not have the majority support of MPs in the Dewan Rakyat.

The country has been in a state of political flux since then, with many calling for his resignation and a return to the 2018 electoral mandate amid the nationwide Emergency proclaimed in January to reduce the daily four-digit Covid-19 cases that have also resulted in the suspension of Parliament sittings.