Malaysia (Commonwealth Union)_Anwar Ibrahim, the veteran opposition leader, was nominated and sworn in as the tenth Prime Minister of Malaysia by King Sultan Abdullah, following days of post-election impasse in the country. According to the official statement from the royal palace, “After taking into consideration the views of Their Royal Highnesses the Malay Rulers, His Majesty has given consent to appoint Anwar Ibrahim as the 10th Prime Minister of Malaysia.”
During the November 19 elections, Anwar’s Pakatan Harapan (PH) party gained the majority of seats (82), but was in need of 112 seats to establish a government on its own. During the last five days, rigorous negotiations were carried out, which included discussions about possible combinations of parties and political partnerships that will assist the party in attaining power. However, political and ideological disagreements led to a standstill, compelling the nation’s constitutional monarch to intervene. Accordingly, the king called the country’s leaders and requested that they reach a settlement.
This occurs roughly 30 years after Ibrahim initially came close to being appointed in the 1990s, but was abruptly fired and imprisoned. Anwar Ibrahim, a senior politician in Malaysia, started his political career as a student activist in 1971, before establishing the Muslim Youth Movement of Malaysia, known as ABIM in Malay. According to reports, during the early years of his political career, he led rallies against rural poverty and other socio-economic challenges in the country. The then-Prime Minister Mahathir Mohammad saw Ibrahim’s political power and persuaded him to join the dominant United Malays National Organization (UMNO) party.
In his position as finance minister, Ibrahim independently took decisions pertaining to the country’s administration, which aided Malaysia in several ways to survive the Asian financial crisis. However, with the intensifying financial crisis of the 1990s, the bond between Mahathir and Ibrahim also worsened. It further reached the point that Anwar was sacked and charged with corruption and sodomy, a crime in Malaysia, in September 1998.
According to analysts, as Malaysia’s new Prime Minister, Anwar Ibrahim has several challenges ahead of him. He has been entrusted with the responsibility of leading a nation that is still suffering from the long-lasting effects of COVID-19. In addition, he has to deal with the bitterly divided political leaders. According to reports, the Malaysian public wants the new administration to combat corruption, safeguard democratic rights, and maintain the independence of important institutions such as the parliament and courts.
