KUALA LUMPUR – Several MPs today said they have submitted their statutory declarations (SDs) to Istana Negara to nominate the ninth prime minister, as requested by Dewan Rakyat Speaker Datuk Azhar Azizan Harun yesterday.
Lembah Pantai MP Fahmi Fadzil said his SD was submitted via email this morning while his PKR colleague and Batu MP P. Prabakaran said he sent his via both email and fax at 12.30pm.
“The selection of the candidate for the prime minister’s post is in line with PKR’s stand that adheres to the PH consensus, which is to nominate Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim as the candidate for prime minister,” said Prabakaran.
Meanwhile, Pasir Puteh MP Datuk Nik Muhammad Zawawi Salleh also confirmed that he had submitted his SD to the party leadership for further action.
He said the PAS ulama council, which he heads, supports the nomination of Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob as prime minister, which is in line with the party’s central leadership’s unanimous decision to back the Umno vice-president for the post.
“This also shows that the Perikatan Nasional (PN) leadership is capable of working together in any kind of situation. I am confident Ismail Sabri can demonstrate good leadership based on his prior experience as the deputy prime minister,” he said.
Tumpat MP and Kelantan PAS secretary Datuk Che Abdullah Mat Nawi said he, too, had submitted his SD to the party leadership for further action.
Meanwhile, DAP organising secretary Anthony Loke said the party submitted the SDs before the 4pm deadline but would not reveal details, as instructed by Istana Negara.
Yesterday, Azhar issued a notice for all 220 MPs to submit their candidate for prime minister to Istana Negara in writing by 4pm today.
The notice is to enable one of them, who commands the confidence of the majority, to be appointed prime minister following the resignation of Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, who is also Pagoh MP, on Monday.
According to sources, Ketereh MP Tan Sri Annuar Musa submitted his letter via email while Padang Terap MP Datuk Seri Mahdzir Khalid had done so via WhatsApp.
Meanwhile, Warisan MPs have signed two SDs each supporting Anwar and Warisan president Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal as candidates for the top post.
Warisan Youth chief Datuk Azis Jamman, who is also the Sepanggar MP, stressed that, although they had signed two SDs, Warisan would strive to ensure that Anwar, as the first choice for the post of prime minister, had a sufficient majority.
He said that they have 105 supporters, including from Warisan, and that Anwar would need the support of six more MPs for a simple majority of 111 seats in Parliament.
Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) has also submitted its SDs to Istana Negara but GPS chairman Datuk Abang Johari Openg said he could not reveal the names and number of candidates that had been sent.
“I cannot reveal the names (that had been submitted). I cannot precede the Yang di-Pertuan Agong (Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah),” he said.
Asked if Anwar or PH had contacted him to get his support, Abang Johari said he had not been contacted by Anwar.
The Dewan Rakyat currently has 220 MPs after the deaths of two MPs last year – Datuk Hasbullah Osman (Gerik) in November and Datuk Liew Vui Keong (Batu Sapi) in October.
As such, an MP would require the support of at least 111 lawmakers for a simple majority to enable him to be appointed prime minister. – Bernama, August 18, 2021
