THE Yang di-Pertuan Agong has decreed that the new Prime Minister (PM) must seek a vote of confidence as soon as possible.
This was necessary to determine the legitimacy of the new premier, said Comptroller of the Royal Household Datuk Ahmad Fadil Shamsuddin in a statement posted to the official Istana Negara Facebook page on Wednesday (Aug 18).
The Agong made the decree to fulfil Article 40(2)(a) and 43(2)(a) of the Federal Constitution which states that His Majesty must appoint a member of the Dewan Rakyat who in his opinion commands the confidence of the majority of Dewan Rakyat members as the new Prime Minister to chair the Cabinet.
His Majesty has also decreed that whoever is chosen as the new PM through the MPs’ must have his or her legitimacy tested in Parliament.
MPs have until 4pm today to submit in writing to Istana Negara their candidate for the next PM.
The King will also chair a special Conference of Rulers meeting this Friday to discuss ‘current affairs’, added Ahmad Fadil.
Yesterday the Agong and His Majesty’s deputy, Sultan Nazrin Muizzuddin Shah of Perak met with the leaders of all major political parties.
Both rulers had conveyed to the parties that all their MPs must work together to focus on the COVID-19 pandemic response and economic recovery.
According to Ahmad Fadil, His Majesty had, before concluding the audience, reminded the heads and representatives of major parties that in order to ensure harmony, the MPs who win must reach out to those who did not.
“Everyone should be working as a team. In other words, the winner does not win everything, while the loser does not lose everything.
“His Majesty has also expressed his hopes to be able to grant audiences to the MPs from time to time,” he concluded. – Aug 18, 2021.
