Mahathir Mohamad has been sworn in as Malaysia's new prime minister, capping a remarkable political comeback by the 92-year-old. The Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition was dethroned on Wednesday after six decades in power.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/A. Hoe
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Mahathir Mohamad was sworn in as Malaysia's prime minster for the second time in his long political career on Thursday, although this time as the head of an opposition coalition that claimed its first election victory in six decades.
The swearing-in ceremony at the Royal Palace in Kuala Lumpur caps off one of the most dramatic elections in Malaysian history. Coming out of retirement, the former prime minister turned his back on the Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition, which had governed Malaysia since it gained independence from Britain in 1957, to lead an alliance of opposition parties to victory.
Mahathir's opposition alliance, known as Pact of Hope, won 121 seats to claim a simple parliamentary majority. BN won just 79 seats — down from 133 previously.
Outgoing Prime Minister Najib Razak said he "accepted the verdict of the people," but did not initially concede defeat as no party won a clear majority. "BN is committed to the principles of democracy," he added.
Historic transfer of power
At 92 years of age, Mahathir becomes the world's oldest elected leader. However, he has pledged to grant jailed opposition icon Anwar Ibrahim a royal pardon and eventually pass the premiership on to him.
"I was very sleepy this morning," he joked when asked about a delay in of the swearing-in ceremony on Thursday, following a tense vote and a prolonged vote count on the previous day.
"I got up late and lots of people got up late," he added. "The moment I got up, as I was having breakfast, I called all the officers concerned and told them all things we have to do."
"There is an urgency here, we need to form the government now, today," Mahathir said.
Mahathir ruled Malaysia between 1981 and 2003, overseeing the country's transformation into an industrialized nation and guiding it through the Asian financial crisis of two decades ago. His tough stance on political opponents and dissidents prompted several critics to label him a dictator.
Despite being a polarizing figure, police said that Wednesday's election largely remained peaceful except for a handful of minor scuffles between supporters of opposing camps. Malaysian national police chief Mohamad Fuzi said authorities would ensure a smooth transition of power following the swearing-in ceremony.
Malaysia sees the return of Mahathir Mohamad
Former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad could make history as the world's oldest head of government and a successful "comeback retiree" if he beats incumbent Najib Razak in the country's upcoming elections.
Image: picture alliance/AP/D. Chan
The doctor is in - again
A medical doctor by training, Mahathir led Malaysia from 1981 to 2003 and is dubbed the country's "father of modernization." A shrewd politician, he won five consecutive general elections, while deflecting challenges to his leadership of the United Malays National Organization (UMNO), a core component party of the ruling coalition, the Barisan Nasional (BN).
Image: Getty Images/AFP/M. Vatsyayana
Extraordinary elections ahead
The Malaysian elections must be held by August this year, with analysts predicting they will happen by June. It promises an unprecedented spectacle as it will pit incumbent Najib Razak against Mahathir, his former mentor, who had favored him and helped install him as PM in 2009. Mahathir quit UMNO in 2016 following the 1MDB scandal, saying it had become "Najib's party."
Image: AP
Rallying for 'clean' elections
Called a "dictator" by critics for his hard stance on dissidents and the press, and for curbing the power of the judiciary while he was PM, he attended a Bersih ("Clean") rally in 2016 organized by several NGOs seeking reforms of the current electoral system to ensure free, clean and fair elections. Critics also blame him for consolidating power in the hands of the executive during his tenure.
Image: AFP/Getty Images/M. Rasfan
An astounding about-turn
Mahathir set up a new party in 2016, which then joined forces with Pakatan Harapan, a loose coalition of oppostion parties. Ironically, he had locked away some members of these parties before, most significantly, his former deputy, Anwar Ibrahim. The coalition has stated that if it wins the 2018 elections, Mahathir would be PM and Anwar's wife, Wan Azizah Wan Ismail (pictured here), his deputy.
Image: Reuters/L. Seng Sin
The eyebrow-raising reconciliation
Anwar (L), once Mahathir's heir apparent-turned-archrival, was sacked from his post as deputy PM, and later charged and found guilty of graft and sodomy. Yet, in their shared zeal to unseat Najib, they've now struck a deal, with Mahathir offering to secure a royal pardon for Anwar (currently serving a second sentence for sodomy under Najib's administration), easing the way for Anwar to become PM.
Image: AFP/Getty Images/F. Silvan
Between a rock and a hard place
Not all Malaysians are on board with this pact though. Some civil society members and opposition lawmakers blame Mahathir for engineering the very system he now opposes. This disquiet has spurred a new movement. #UndiRosak (or #SpoiltVote) that urges voters to either boycott the polls or cast spoilt ballots. But others argue that this will merely split opposition votes and empower BN further.
Image: AP
Future in peril?
Current PM Najib Razak's administration has been mired in scandals, most notably involving the state fund 1MDB, which is being probed for money laundering in several countries. However, a survey in December predicted that he is likely to remain in power given a fractious opposition and his government's efforts to redraw electoral boundaries that critics claim highly favor a BN win.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/F. Ismail
Loss of popular vote
The BN, which has governed Malaysia since independence in 1957, lost its two-thirds parliamentary majority after the 2013 elections. It also then lost the popular vote for the first time in its history to Pakatan Harapan.
Image: Getty Images
Courting the millennials
Meanwhile, the nonagenarian has taken to social media in a bid to court the country's younger electorate. But a poll conducted in August 2017 found that "seven out of 10 voters below the age of 30 in Peninsular Malaysia do not care about politics; two-thirds believe that politicians were not just untrustworthy, but also the 'main problem in Malaysia.'"
