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Malaysian politician Anwar Ibrahim on Saturday won the by-election by a large majority, paving the way for the appointment as Prime Minister that Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad had promised him.
Although Mr. Anwar is supposed to triumph, he wins ahead of the other six. He won 31,016 votes for the seat of the parliament in the city of Port Dickson in the south of the country, more than four times more than his nearest rival, who got only 7,456 votes.
"This is an important step [and a] vote of confidence in Pakatan Harapan [Alliance of Hope] government and the reform program and the prime minister, "said Mr. Anwar at a press conference following his victory.
Electoral victory marks Anwar's return to politics just five months after his royal pardon, following his second sodomy sentence in 2015, when his charges were fabricated to end his political career .
It will be the first time that he and Mr. Mahathir have been sitting in Parliament under the same flag after a tough battle that lasted more than two decades. Mr. Mahathir, the world's oldest leader at the age of 93, promised to cede the post of prime minister to Mr. Anwar in about two years. Mr Anwar is expected to sit in Parliament at the opening of the next session on 15 October.
The reconciliation followed an acrimonious quarrel between the two politicians that began in the 1990s. Formerly a star of the former ruling coalition, Mr. Anwar was fired by Mr. Mahathir in 1998. He was convicted of corruption and sodomy a year later, in what Mr. Anwar described as falsely invented accusations.
But the two men have reconstituted an alliance with the aim of overthrowing former prime minister Najib Razak during the May elections amid appeals for fighting corruption in the country, while the scandal surrounding the 1MDB public investment fund was taking place.
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As part of his two-year term as prime minister, Anwar is "unlikely to rock the boat aggressively" by immediately unveiling his own political agenda, said Peter Mumford, director of the Asia division. Eurasia Group. political risk counseling.
"It is unlikely that Anwar will immediately occupy a senior position in the firm; the power would fall quickly from Mahathir if that happened, "he added.
Anwar told reporters on Saturday that he planned to focus on "assisting our leaders and parliament to ensure we undertake effective parliamentary reforms."
His return to Parliament precedes the unveiling of the new government's first budget on Nov. 2, one of the biggest tests for the ruling coalition: debt repayment, promise to reintroduce fuel subsidies and lower revenues weigh on the budget deficit.
Since his return to power, Mr. Mahathir's government has pledged to recover as much funds as possible in some megaprojects related to Singapore and China deemed too expensive, and to the $ 4.5 billion allegedly diverted from 1MDB, launching a fierce investigation of the state. investment background.
