Malaysia PM Anwar gets two-thirds backing in confidence vote

KUALA LUMPUR – Malaysia Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on Monday received the backing of two-thirds of the countrys parliamentarians in a confidence vote, cementing his position as the premier with the strongest majority since 2008.

The confidence motion for Datuk Seri Anwar, 75, was passed by just voice votes, which usually indicates strong majority support, of Malaysias 222-member Lower House during a special Parliament sitting on Monday, the first day that Parliament has sat since he became Prime Minister on Nov 24.

The confidence motion was tabled by Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof.

A total of 12 lawmakers from both sides of the political divide debated the confidence motion.

Newly-installed opposition leader Hamzah Zainudin dubbed the confidence motion a gimmick as it was taking place after a deal had already been signed between all the parties that comprise Mr Anwars government. Under the deal – called a memorandum of agreement – all parties undertook to back Mr Anwar in any confidence motion or supply Bills. They also agreed that rogue MPs who failed to do so would lose their lawmaker status under the countrys new anti party-hopping law.

Mr Anwar leads what is dubbed by his administration as a unity government, which comprises his Pakatan Harapan coalition, the former ruling Barisan Nasional coalition and multiple other smaller outfits and independent MPs, after the Nov 19 general election last month resulted in a hung Parliament.

Having supermajority backing allows Mr Anwars government to make constitutional amendments in addition to passing crucial supply Bills which only need a simple majority to gain passage in Parliament.

The last Prime Minister to command this level of support in Parliament was Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, whose Barisan Nasional controlled an overwhelming 198 out of 222 Parliament seats just before a general election in March 2008. No Malaysian party has single-handedly won a supermajority since.

Mr Anwars government earlier on Monday also managed to vote in their candidate for Parliament Speaker with a strong majority. Datuk Johari Abdul, a former three-term MP and former chief whip for Mr Anwars Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR), was elected as Speaker on Monday morning with the backing of 147 MPs.

PN had nominated Tan Sri Radzi Sheikh Ahmad, an ex-home minister and former senator from their party, for the role of Speaker, but he only obtained 74 votes – all from his party colleagues, who are the only coalition in the opposition bloc.

Mr Anwars government also managed to elect their deputy speaker candidates – Madam Alice Lau from Democratic Action Party (DAP), a component of Mr Anwars PH, and Datuk Ramli Mohd Nor from BN. Both are MPs for the wards of Lanang and Cameron Highlands respectively.

Mr Anwars government is expected to now pass a temporary supplementary expenditure Bill in Parliament on Tuesday while his government prepares a new iteration of the 2023 federal budget, which did not gain Parliamentary passage before the Lower House was dissolved in October to pave the way for the Nov 19 polls.

His government is seeking RM56 billion (S$17 billion) in supplementary expenditure, a fraction of the RM372.3 billion budget that was tabled by Mr Anwars predecessor Ismail Sabri Yaakob in October, just before Parliament was dissolved.

A new budget is expected to be tabled by Mr Anwar in early 2023, as he looks to further consolidate his position before a crucial set of state assembly elections take place in mid-2023. These polls will ostensibly act as a barometer for the level of support and approval his government has. More On This Topic Interactive: How a divided Malaysia gave rise to Perikatan Nasionals teal tsunami Anwars move to team up with Barisan Nasional may backfire Despite winning only 74 seats in Parliament, PN – primarily led by Malay Muslim parties Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia and Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS) – is seen as leading a green wave of support in many Malay heartlands and stands a strong chance of making further gains in the six state assemblies that are due to hold polls next year.

Short after being appointed as PM, Mr Anwars PH lost their long-held Padang Serai ward to PN with an overwhelming 16,000 vote majority. PHs government partners BN only managed to retain the Tioman state seat in Pahang by a three digit majority, after a strong challenge by PN.

Both seats held an election on Dec 7 after the deaths of candidates in the days leading up to the Nov 19 general election forced the Election Commission to delay the election for the two wards. More On This Topic Malaysias poll results signal a hardening of the ethnic divide Why young Malaysian voters are drawn to Perikatan Nasional