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KOTA BELUD, SABAH – Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said on Friday (September 18) that his six-month government “should swiftly hold” general elections if his allies win Sabah’s state elections on September 26.
This was the first time he has openly expressed the possibility of instant national elections amid regular accusations from the opposition that the Perikatan Nasional (PN) coalition he leads is a “back door government”.
Umno, a flexible partner in PN, has also been pushing for an early general election as he believes he could return to power and choose his own prime minister.
“At the national level, we have not decided when the general elections should be called … but if we win the state elections in Sabah … we should quickly hold the general elections,” Bernama said. agency, while campaigning in Kota Belud, Sabah.
“The important thing in the Sabah polls is the signal that we can get whether or not they are supporting Perikatan Nasional or whether they want me to continue being prime minister because we want Malaysia to move forward and succeed. One of the ways to be successful is stick with me, “he added.
The next general election won’t be held until 2023, but there have been persistent rumors that he would call snap elections in the coming months.
Sabah was controlled by a federal opposition alliance led by Parti Warisan Sabah after the 2018 general elections, but collapsed in late July after a group of state assemblymen defected, leading to the calling of new elections.
Tan Sri Muhyiddin PN, with its Barisan Nasional allies, Parti Bersatu Sabah, hopes to replace Warisan as state government.
At the same time, a victory would consolidate the findings of a recent poll that the prime minister is popular with voters.
An independent pollster Merdeka Center poll released earlier this month found that Muhyiddin’s approval rating among Malaysians was 69 percent. The PN coalition and its partners scored well below 50 percent, making it an asset among voters.
The poll found that 51 percent of those surveyed believe Malaysia is heading in the right direction, double the 25 percent who felt the same in recent months in the power of rival Pakatan Harapan (PH).
Warisan is aligned with the PH coalition that ruled Malaysia before it was replaced by PN six months ago.
The prime minister said that Sabahans should vote for the PN allied parties, as the federal government could bring development to the state, the second largest among Malaysia’s 13 states and one of the poorest.
“If there is a possibility of forming a new state government, do not opt for Warisan because Pakatan Harapan has ceased to exist and no longer rules the country,” Muhyiddin was quoted as saying by Bernama.
“I don’t think that the people of Sabah still want to elect the opposition during this very critical situation, especially when economic activities are declining due to Covid-19. We need to overcome this difficult situation and that is why we need an aligned Perikatan-State Government ”, He added.
De facto Law Minister Takiyuddin Hassan told Parliament in August that it could cost RM1.2 billion (S $ 400 million) for Malaysia to hold general elections amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
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