KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 28 — Perlis is set to swear in a new menteri besar at 1pm today, according to The New Straits Times, drawing a line under days of political turmoil triggered by the resignation of Mohd Shukri Ramli.
The successor has yet to be officially named, but the appointment follows a sudden collapse of support for Shukri in the state legislative assembly, one of Malaysia’s smallest with just 15 seats.
His administration was thrown into crisis after eight Perikatan Nasional (PN) assemblymen — a majority — signed statutory declarations (SDs) withdrawing their backing, including three lawmakers from PAS.
Shukri later resigned, citing health reasons, amid mounting questions over whether he still commanded the confidence of the House.
PAS‘ central leadership moved quickly against the dissenters, sacking Mohd Ridzuan Hashim (Guar Sanji), Saad Seman (Chuping) and Fakhrul Anwar Ismail (Bintong).
Their seats have been declared vacant, raising the prospect of by-elections, though attention has now turned to restoring a working majority in the assembly.
The fallout has also exposed strains within PN. Coalition partner Bersatu president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said yesterday the party had never instructed its assemblymen to sign any SDs.
PAS has reportedly submitted two names for consideration as Shukri’s replacement, including Santan assemblyman Muhammad Azmir Azizan.
Bersatu, meanwhile, has put forward three of its lawmakers: Abu Bakar Hamzah (Kuala Perlis), Izizam Ibrahim (Titi Tinggi) and Megat Hashirat Hassan (Pauh).
Under Perlis’s constitutional arrangements, the new menteri besar must be someone judged to command majority support in the assembly.
Today’s swearing-in, scheduled to take place at Istana Arau in Kangar, is expected to signal whether the ruling bloc has succeeded in reassembling that majority — or whether the state faces a more drawn-out period of political uncertainty.
