Zahid: Agong will decide who becomes PM after GE15

GE15 | The Yang di-Pertuan Agong will decide who becomes the prime minister if BN wins the 15th general election (GE15), said BN chairperson Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.

He said the Agong, Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah (above), is constitutionally empowered to determine who will lead the country.

“The absolute power to appoint the prime minister lies in the hands of the Agong, as enshrined under Article 43(1) of the Federal Constitution.

“I’m confident that His Majesty will use his wisdom to determine who will become the prime minister when BN gains the majority to form the government,” said Zahid.

The Umno president was speaking to reporters at Hutang Melintang, in Bagan Datuk, Perak last night. He earlier attended a Deepavali dinner event there.

Traditionally, the Umno president will become the prime minister if BN wins a general election.

However, BN has maintained that caretaker prime minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob, who is also an Umno vice-president, will be the coalition’s prime ministerial candidate should it win at the polls.

Ismail Sabri has stressed that the decision for him to keep the country’s top position was decided at last year’s Umno general assembly, as well as during the party’s supreme council meeting in April.

Zahid was also asked about claims by Perikatan Nasional (PN) leaders that he would cooperate with Pakatan Harapan chairperson Anwar Ibrahim to form the government after GE15.

‘PN shooting blindly’

The incumbent Bagan Datuk MP said PN was shooting blindly by making such claims due to its failure to create a ‘big tent’ among the opposition parties.

“PN tried to create a ‘big tent’ among the opposition but failed. That is why they are shooting blindly,” he quipped, referring to the term used to describe the concept of uniting all opposition parties against BN ahead of GE15.

PN’s blind shooting and “missed shots” will not impact BN in any way, Zahid said, as he is confident his coalition will be able to form the federal government without working with any other parties.

In GE15, the Bagan Datuk parliamentary seat is set to witness a four-way clash between Zahid, Pakatan Harapan’s Shamsul Iskandar Md Akin, PN’s Nik Muhammad Faiz Na’aman, and Gerak Independent’s (GI) Tawfik Ismail.

The constituency is a stronghold of Zahid, who has held it since 1995. Zahid retained the seat with a 5,073 vote majority in the 14th general election.

The country will go to the polls on Saturday, Nov 19, while early voting is today.

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