Kuala Lumpur: Malaysia’s Muhyiddin Yassin stepped down as prime minister on Monday after months of political turmoil culminated in the loss of his majority, but his resignation is likely to open another chapter of instability in the absence of any obvious successor.
Muhyiddin’s resignation ends a tumultuous 17 months in office, the shortest stint of a Malaysian leader, but also hampers efforts to reboot a pandemic-stricken economy and curb a resurgence of Covvid-19 infections. The Southeast Asian nation’s king appointed Muhyiddin as the caretaker prime minister until a new premier can be found, but did not give a timeline.
King Al-Sultan Abdullah said he would invoke his constitutional power to appoint a Prime Minister.